Robin: Boy Wonder
by youwishyouwerethiscool
Summary: Robin's existence has always been kept a secret. He wants to meet the League and the sidekicks, maybe even make friends. But before he has the chance, the entire Justice League just disappears. With no Batman and no one he can trust, he takes it upon himself to find the League using impossible clues left by the Bat. But he can do it. After all, he's Robin the Boy Wonder!
1. Chapter 1

This is my version of a Robin being awesome story. It's well written, thorough and well written. Not to be cocky or anything XD. This first chapter is just an intro so I posted the next chapter right afterwards. Comment if you love. (I know you will).

Just to let you know, I don't own DC comics or any of its characters. There are some of my own unique villains I'm going to throw in, but you won't really know the difference. Please enjoy.

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1

I'm a superhero. Okay, that's not politically correct. Technically, I'm a _sidekick_. To Batman.

Yes, my name is Robin.

Actually, that's not really correct either. My real name is Richard Grayson. But the Bat calls me Dick, like my folks did. I'm not really supposed to tell anyone that. It goes against the code.

I'm thirteen years old and I've been a sidekick since I was eight. Bruce Wayne took me in after my parent's died. He's a millionaire, philanthropist, all around great guy. And that's just the side people know about him. I'm one of the few who know him as Batman.

I actually found out when I was trying to sneak out of the manor. I was trying to find the man who had killed my parents. Instead, Bruce caught me. The next thing I know, I'm waking up in the Bat-cave. That's when Bruce told me he was the Batman. And then he offered me a position. To be his partner.

How could I say no?

I was already a born acrobat and I had been performing on the trapeze since before I could walk. I used to belong to Haley's Circus, as part of the act the Flying Graysons.

But Batman taught me martial arts, how to hack any computer, how to search for clues, how to detect if someone is lying, how to hot-wire and drive almost any vehicle, how to speak several languages, how to disable a bomb in under ten seconds, how to use various weapons, and how to blend in with the shadows. It's needless to say that he taught me a lot.

The most important thing he taught me, however, was how to role play. Superheroes are only superheroes if their identity is hidden. And the best way to do that is by making sure nobody will ever suspect you as your alter ego. Batman accomplished that by being all dark and moody as Batman, and then all smiles and public donations as Bruce Wayne. I sort of have a similar deal going on.

I maintain a preppy sort of air as a private school kid. I make sure I get good grades, go to every pep rally, run for student government, and get on the yearbook committee every year. But at the same time, I maintain a snobby way of looking at things like someone would if they've only ever been rich. I make sure all my friends are popular, I have all the latest clothes and tech, I get in trouble every once in a while for talking back, and I mock some kids behind their backs. Of course, I don't actually mean anything by it, it's all part of the cover. But if anyone said Dick Grayson was actually a superhero, they'd be laughed out of the school.

A common mistake most superheroes make is thinking that the best way to blend in is to take a step away from the crowd. To be the outcast, the kid who gets bullied, the loner with practically no friends.

But that's stupid. The way Batman devised is much better. No one would dare bully me. Everyone knows who I am. Dick Grayson. Rich kid, teacher's pet, popular kid. Even kids who I don't even know, know who I am. And because they are so self-assured that they know my exact personality, my way of mind, and every thought that goes through my head, they would never expect me to be a crime fighter. Those loner kids that no one knows anything about...they'll be the ones everyone's whispering about in the halls if there's a tipoff that Robin goes to this school. They don't know where that kid was Friday night, while Robin was stopping Catwoman with Batman. But Dick Grayson—no way, he was at a party, right? I mean, _someone_ must have seen him.

I've got a reputation. And thanks to that, no one knows I'm Robin.

But it's weird. The few friends the loner kid does have know him completely and stand up for him whenever everybody's pointing accusatory fingers at him.

But me, my friends have no idea who I really am. Once I saw this one kid getting bullied and I said to my friends that we should stop it. They just looked at me like I had grown a third eye.

"Gee, Dick, we didn't think you were the helping, goody-two-shoes type."

And it's times like that where I feel like _I'm_ actually the loner kid on campus.

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Like I said, next chapter will have stuff actually happening. If you love it already, feel free to tell me.

-youwishyouwerethiscool


	2. Chapter 2

Now the action starts. Are you ready?

BTdubs, I don't own Robin. Or Batman. Or any other DC characters. I do own this awesome plotline though.

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2

The first thing Batman taught me was never leave home without your utility belt. The second thing he taught me was how to get it past airport security. Lucky for me, the Bat's a millionaire so we probably will never have to take public transportation (which is just as well, because that lesson was one if the few things I failed at. Batman likes to test in _real life_ scenarios and it was really awkward trying to explain to the security officers at Douglas International why an eight year old kid was trying to smuggle a belt of homemade grenades onto a plane).

Batman has a _lot_ of rules. And naturally, he had me memorize all 3,457 of them. It's really not that bad, I figure that all sidekicks have to do similar things.

The thing is, I've never actually met any other sidekicks. Batman keeps me on the down low. He calls me "the secret weapon." I haven't met any superheroes or sidekicks from any place. And I doubt that Batman told them about me. He's not really the sharing type.

Batman says he knows what's best, I totally trust him. But it would still be nice to join some type of sidekick share group where I can talk to people who are experiencing similar problems as me. "So yesterday I forgot my backup mask at home. Annoying, am I right?"

"Yes, Robin, totally. You're so awesome!"

At least, that's how I imagine it going in my head. But of course, Batman would never allow me to join even if such a thing did exist. He's really big on keeping your personal and superhero life separate. That mean no one knows that the Bat goes home and watches paid programming to put himself to sleep after a busy night tracking down Mr. Freeze.

All I'm saying is it would be nice to have a friend. As far as I can tell, there are sidekicks close in age to me, but I'm one of the youngest ones. Aqualad, Kid Flash, and Speedy (dumb name) are all the closest. There's also a girl, Supergirl, but I don't know a lot about her.

Batman's Rule Number 1,342 is know your friends like you know your enemies. And by friends, he means acquaintances. And when he says to know them, he means _everything_.

So even though I've never met Aqualad or Kid Flash or any of them, I still know a ton about them. Their real names, birthdays, favorite things, places they like to hang out, family, stuff like that. And no, I'm not a stalker. I'm apprenticed to the world's greatest detective. Detective and stalker are really sort of the same thing except the detectives stalk the stalkers. Plus, Batman has the same password for all his Justice League files. It was almost too easy.

I've never tried to approach Batman about meeting other superheroes before. I don't know what got into my head to do it today.

I'm sitting at the long imported table, Bruce to my left. Alfred is bringing in a hot stack of pancakes and hash browns.

I shift, making it clear that I was about to say something. Bruce obediently looks up. "Can I ask you a question?"

Bruce watches me steadily. "What do the rules say about questions?"

"Sir, please, can we enjoy breakfast? Let the lad eat." Alfred gives me a sad look.

I frown. "Rule Number 620, don't ask questions we don't want to know the answer to, Rule 746 don't ask stupid questions unless you want to hear stupid answers—"

"Sir—"

"Alright, Alfred. Calm down. I was just testing the boy's mind." He looks at me seriously. "No matter what time it is, always be awake and aware."

I nod though I've already heard this a thousand times. Someone should tell the Bat that the definition of pop quiz doesn't mean that it happens every morning.

"Now, what is the question?" Bruce leans back, taking a sip of his extra strong coffee.

"I was wondering...well..."

"Don't pause, always speak with authority," Bruce immediately says.

I'm starting to wonder if I'll be able to get this out at all without having to spend the rest of the day practicing my public speaking. "Okay, fine. I was wondering if I could, you know, meet with other sidekicks."

Bruce gives me his best Batman scrutinizing stare. I meet his gaze steadily because I know if I look away first, I'll get an even harsher scolding.

Alfred clears his throat and Bruce blinks.

"What brought this on?"

I swallow. "Well, it just, you see on TV that—"

"Never trust anything unless you see or hear it for yourself. And even then, don't believe it."

"Yeah, I know—Rule 345—but you see all the time that the other sidekicks get to hang out together and fight crime and stuff."

"Never use 'stuff' where another—"

"—word can be used, yeah I know." I resist rolling my eyes.

Alfred gets up and quietly leaves the table. "We could have just had breakfast..."

"Dick...look. It's not those people you want to be friends with. They're great people, sure, but we all know the risks when we sign up for this. We can't just be friends with them knowing they might die any day—"

"That ridiculous. No one has died in twenty-nine years," I snap, without thinking.

Bruce pauses. "You hacked my League files."

I blush. "I—"

"Enough. Get to school. I have a password to change." Bruce stands up and leaves without another word.

When I get in the limo, I'm flushed and angry. Alfred doesn't say anything to me as he drives me to school, probably sensing that I want to be left alone.

I lean my forehead against the cool window glass. It's raining again, but it usually does in Gotham.

No one really talks to me at school either. My friends can tell when I'm in a mood and they just talk to each other, discussing the hottest girls and the most annoying teachers. I have three people walk up and ask if I can attend their party on Saturday. I say yes to all of them, keeping my cover, but not really sure if I'll be able to make any of them if I have an alert from Batman. Maybe one at the most, and, of course, that person will think they're my favorite and immediately get boosted in the popularity standings.

Janet, the girl I've been dating, walks with me to my locker.

"So, what are you doing Saturday?" she asks, twirling a finger in her hair.

I shrug noncommittally. "Party."

"Oh, whose? Because I..." Then she launches into a huge spiel, talking about who's going to which party and who's not invited. I pretend to listen. Janet's really pretty, but she talks too much. I'll probably break up with her in a few days. My friends tease me and call me a player, but honestly, I'm looking for someone a little deeper; someone who can think farther into the future than the upcoming Saturday.

Suddenly, there's a beeping in my ear.

"Janet, I gotta go," I say, interrupting whatever she had been saying.

Janet blinks and walks away, looking a little hurt. That was really rude, I know, but the Bat hates it when I keep him waiting.

I make sure I'm alone before touching the skin colored piece in my ear. "I'm here, what is it?"

No answer.

That's not good. I take it out, studying the earbud. I charged it just last night. It should be fine. I put it back in my ear. Nothing, just static.

Something is seriously wrong.

I open my locker and run my finger over what looks like a used bandaid stuck to the back. But it's actually a cleverly disguised fingerprint scanner.

The secret back panel opens, revealing a small doorway. I squeeze through. A few years back, Wayne Enterprises made a huge donation to my school for constructing some new classrooms. That's when the Bat had this put in. It's just large enough for me to change in and get my gear together before slipping out the back.

I grab my costume off the wall and take off my school uniform to put it on. It's form fitting and shows off my somewhat lacking muscles. I'm pretty skinny and still on the small side. I'm more limber and wiry than I would like. But Batman taught me to use that to my advantage. He claims that I'll grow out of it when I get older.

My outfit has a red torso with black flexible pants and combat boots. My utility belt is yellow, and an R encircled in yellow lies over my heart. A pair of elbow length black gloves that (if I'm quick enough) can supposedly stop bullets and have a built in AC adapter. It's complete with a black cape with a yellow inside that comes in handy when I want to hide the whole ensemble.

When I was little, I complained to Batman that it looked stupid. He simply said I didn't give him a whole lot of options with the name I chose. So he had chosen a design that looked like somewhere in between Robin Hood and keeping with the Red-Breasted Robin theme. But when I told him I wanted to be Robin, I was eight and probably feeling homesick (Robin is what my mom used to call me). I guess I thought I would be keeping with the flying animal thing he had going on.

Batman told me he chose his name because it reminded him of a time where he had been scared (that's hard to imagine) and he wanted all the villains he faced to feel the same fear.

I'm glad I chose Robin as my name now because it makes me think of my mom, which makes me think of how she was killed, which makes me angry. So every time the bad guys say my name, I have a reason to beat the crap out of them.

But enough of that, I have an actual crisis on my hands.

Using my gloves, I called up my holo-screen from my wrist and touched my message box. These gloves are probably the most high-tech part of my gear.

It says that I have three missed messages, which makes me cringe. It means the Bat tried to call me before but I didn't notice. I must have been more deep in thought than I thought (heh).

I listen to the first one.

"Robin...I swear, you better be busy at school because if you forgot to charge your earbud, I'll..."

I wince and play the second one.

"Look, something's not right. I need you back at the Manor, right now. There's too much fog...I think something—"

And the transmission cuts out.

I feel a little queasy. Then I get to the third call and all I hear is static on the other end. Like Batman tried to call back and something happened...

A sudden beeping in my ear makes me jump. The holo-screen tells me I have a new message. Slowly, I press the button to open it, fearing what I might see. What if the Bat was captured and is being held kidnapped and the guy wants a ransom or he'll kill him right then and there?

But it's not Batman who appears on the screen. Instead, it's a girl with blonde hair and blue-brown eyes. I immediately know who she is. Kara Zor-El, Superman's cousin, and the Supergirl.

"If you are viewing this, it means you are a sidekick to a member of the Justice League. I'm afraid a horrible tragedy has occurred. You are under orders to report to the Hall of Justice to discuss our next steps."

I wondered briefly whose orders I was under. Supergirl's? Because she had only been a sidekick to Superman for a few months, maybe a year at the most. And where was she that she had the tech to send an instant simultaneous message to every sidekick known?

"For those who don't know me, I'm known as Supergirl. Right now, you all are probably feeling abandoned and confused. But don't be afraid. We have been training for this moment our whole lives. It just came a little sooner than we all thought it would." She gives a small chuckle that doesn't reach her eyes. "Hall of Justice in one hour, starting now, please. We are in code Zero Red." The recording blinks out.

I sit there for a moment, dumbstruck. After all, she didn't even tell us what's going on. I mentally calculate when an hour from now is. Gotham is pretty close to Star City and I'd have plenty of time to get there. I have my license saying I'm old enough to drive a motorcycle, and I can summon my bike with just a touch of a button.

But I'm tempted to go back to Wayne Manor. Is everything still there? Is Alfred okay? Maybe Bruce is still their too, cussing out the liability of faulty tech.

But half of me knows that's not true. Even though it was a recording, I could tell Supergirl was being honest. Something bad did happen. And I really want to know what.

I stick my black mask to my face and check myself over in the mirror. This was it. After five years of being totally secluded from the other sidekicks, I'm suddenly going to meet them all at once.

Oh man, something just occurred to me. If none of them know who I am, they might not trust me. And if I told them I was sidekicked to Batman, they definitely wouldn't believe me. What was it that Batman always says?

_If you're not sure how someone will react to a certain piece if information, best to keep it to yourself._

I study my own blue eyes, clearing them of any emotion, and run a hand through my black hair. Best to appear calm and collected.

I press the button on my glove that summons my motorbike and step through the back door and into a whole different world.

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Do you love it yet? Tell me. Comment.


	3. Chapter 3

Finally, some familiar faces. Robin is about to meet the other sidekicks at last. He truly is too cool for you.

I don't own DC comics. But this plot line might just overshadow that fact.

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3

The streets are silent, which is weird for Gotham. Usually, you can hear the police sirens in the backstreets, the angry shouts of road rage, and some screaming baby somewhere in the crowd. But the street my school is on is unusually quiet. Almost like it can sense something's not right in the world. That something's missing.

Immediately, I think about how the last conversation me and Bruce had, we argued. If I never see him again...

Pushing _that_ happy thought from my head, I turn my attention in the direction of squealing tires. My motorbike pulls up right at the curb and stops in front of me, all by itself. She's a pretty piece of work, custom made for me. She's red, black, and yellow, the same colors as my costume. Hidden machine guns in the front and an engine that can get me up to 400 miles per hour. That's faster than the Bat-mobile.

I hop on, slide on my helmet, and set my GPS for Star City. The bike asks for a vocal recognition and I oblige, saying "Robin slaves for Batman," my preset vocal pattern.

I double-check that I have my license (usually, no cop would dare pull me over, dressed as I am, and even then I could get away fairly easily. Still better safe than sorry). With a flick of my wrist, I gun the engines and speed down the street, my motor causing noises to echo off the strangely silent buildings. There are still people and cars about, but they all seem to be at a low hum similar to the way hundreds of people at a funeral sound.

When I maneuver around cars and trucks none of them even honk their horns at me. This is starting to get weird really fast.

After about an hour, I approach Star City. Everything is so bright and the sun feels hot on my skin. In Gotham it either rains or is overcast day in and day out. So I'm pretty pale and I'm not used to all this sun. My black cape which is perfect for the shadows of Gotham makes me stick out like a sore thumb among the primary colored civilians. I zoom down the streets and make my way to the Hall of Justice.

The Hall is mostly a museum for tourists. Huge statues of their favorite heroes, famous memorabilia from their favorite villains, and the like. But League members get special access to a secret door that does lead to a debriefing room of sorts. At least, that's what Batman told me.

I park my motorcycle and jump off, checking the time. I'm late. On purpose of course. Hopefully, if this isn't a trap, I'll be able to sneak in the back without anyone noticing.

I open the glass doors and slip through the museum portion of the building. There's a glass roof here and the sunlight seems intensified by it. There are some tourists ambling around, but they don't notice me. I go up to the two large steel, titanium-reinforced doors underneath the huge statues of Superman and Batman. Number One and Number Two of the League. I look up at my mentor's twenty foot high gaze. He looks mad. I swear, are there any pictures of Batman where he's _smiling? _

I take off my left hand glove and press my hand to the pad beside the doors. A green light shines out from under my palm as it scans me. A woman's robotic voice asks, "Vocal recognition please."

This is sort of like my bike's system except more advanced. I hope Batman programmed me into the system. Otherwise an electric shock powerful enough to kill a rhino will shoot through my hand and up my arm. "Robin, G2."

"Recognized," the woman's voice says. The huge metal doors slide open.

If nobody noticed me before, the certainly do now. The tourists stare at me, studying my costume.

"Momma, is that Speedy?" a little kid asks.

Slightly annoyed, I wave to them and slip inside. _Speedy_? Seriously?

The metal doors slide closed behind me, shutting me inside a small compartment. There's another simpler, this one with a key pad. It's dark, only illuminated by a small iridescent bulb overhead. After all the sunlight my retinas were tortured by, I have to squint to see the numbers. They're not in numerical order, so I have to be careful as I hit the proper ones.

One...nine...three...eight.

There's a metallic click of a door unlocking and I turn the handle, making the door swing inward.

I immediately take in the room, searching for any traps or anybody lurking who could try to jump me. There's no need though. Everybody here is gathered around a stage stationed underneath a big golden globe of Earth which is hanging from the ceiling. I recognize some people from TV: the Rocket, Bee, the Guardian, Terra. There are a few that I've seen on the news before but don't know their names. Then there are the big ones. Kid Flash, Aqualad, and Speedy. They're standing on the stage, along with Supergirl, who's behind the podium. I realize that this entire room is just for show. The League probably uses it for induction ceremonies or something similar.

My plan of arriving late seems to have worked because nobody seems to notice me joining the back of the crowd.

Supergirl is talking. Again. "It's important for us all to stay calm. We don't know what happened. But it's alright, I'm sure we'll figure something out." She dressed up in full red, white, and blue with the Superman logo on her front. She's hovering a few inches off the ground like she's nervous.

Aqualad speaks and his voice sounds off due to his Atlantean accent. He has dark skin but white hair. His costume is somewhere in between wet gear and dry fit. On his back are two crisscrossing staffs that help him control the water or something. "Thank you all for getting here so quickly."

"Well, most of you," Speedy says. I can see why that kid confused us. His costume is modeled off of Robin Hood too. Except he has an actual bow with arrows slung over his shoulder. It's even complete with a little feathered hat. His outfit is the same basic colors as mine, mostly red with hints of yellow but no black. He's also got a similar mask to my own, but that's where the similarities end. He and I couldn't look more different. He's taller, for one, and has short orange hair. I can tell his eyes are green from this distance half because he's looking right at me.

Then I realize with a jolt that _everyone_ is looking right at me.

"Supergirl said on the hour," Kid Flash says. I can tell even from this distance that he has a face full of freckles. His costume is formfitting and bright yellow. It raps around his forehead, making his hair stick up over the top. Goggles rest over his eyes and two red lightning bolts sticking out of the sides of his head. It's modeled after the Flash's outfit, but I think it looks sort of weird. At fourteen, he's the closest in age to me. The three of them all started as sidekicks around the same time and their supers would sometimes even send them all on missions together.

"You're late," Speedy says, summing it up. "And who are you?"

I clear my throat. "Robin."

I hear someone snicker and I turn and glare at them. It's some girl dressed as a magician. "Something funny?"

"Who's your super, Black Canary?" someone asks. I few more people giggle. I feel my face turn red.

"Enough," Supergirl commands. "He's one of us. I'm sure he has a reason for being late." She looks at me expectantly.

Sheesh, they're really hung up on this late thing. If I had known that, I would of gotten here on time. But then they would probably berate me for being too early. "Well, I don't know how the rest of you got here so fast, but I had to drive."

Speedy scoffs. "Please, you don't have a license. You're what, ten?"

I lock my jaw. "Thirteen."

Speedy snickers with Kid Flash but a look from Aqualad silences them. He turns to me a says sincerely, "You should have had a licensed adult drive you. It's dangerous."

Says the guy who took out a kraken practically by himself. "I have a license." This is getting annoying. "I've been driving for years." I can tell by the looks on their faces that none of them believe me. I can just imagine their mommy's and daddy's dropping them off at the Hall. "So is someone going to tell me what the emergency is?"

Supergirl answers. "Haven't you noticed? All the superheroes that belong to the League...they've just disappeared."

I feel my stomach flip. "What? How can they all just disappear?"

"Nobody knows. Whatever happened to them happened when they were by themselves."

So _none_ of us were near our supers _all at the same time_? I'm finding that a little hard to believe. "Right...but why did you call all the sidekicks together then?"

"Well, we obviously have to do something about this!" Supergirl looks around at the assembled kids."It's our duty to stop the criminals in our heroes' absence and find out what happened to them!"

Duty? "I don't know if any of you have noticed, but there is no crime happening."

"How do you know this?" Aqualad asks.

Because I have a police scanner that I listened to on the way over here. And it was silent the entire way from Gotham. "The streets are quiet and everyone's unusually calm. Unless Star City is always like this."

Speedy shook his head. "It's not and he's right. The City would usually be bursting with crime. But no alerts have shown up, have they, Supergirl?"

Supergirl shakes her head. "No. None. Weird." She chews her lip and then flies down from the stage. "Okay everyone. You guys should all go back to your normal routine. Help each other out. If you encounter any villains, don't take them on alone. But you all should be able to handle regular crooks by yourselves."

Everyone grumbles but no one argues. They all push past me towards the door.

I don't go with them. Aqualad, Kid Flash, Speedy, and Supergirl are all standing on the stage, looking like they have no intention of leaving.

"Bird Boy, you should probably leave too," Supergirl says, butchering my name innocently.

"It's Robin, and there is no way I'm going anywhere." I cross my arms and stare at them.

"No offense intended," Aqualad says, "but we have been doing this job longer than most. And we are experienced together."

"What about her," I jerk my head at Supergirl who turns red.

"Supergirl? Oh, she holds information that—" Kid is cut off my an elbow thrown by Speedy. Rubbing his stomach, he says, "But that's classified."

"Please, this is the Justice League, not the FBI." I roll my eyes. "Is it not designed to uphold the traditions of honesty, integrity, truth, justice..." I start reciting the entire League code by heart.

"Okay, okay, sheesh, calm down," Kid says, stopping me mid-sentence. "You're like a walking smartphone."

Why was he making generalizations when we've only just met?

"Maybe we could use his help," Aqualad says. He studies me carefully. "Who did you say your mentor was?"

"I didn't," I say.

"That doesn't matter," Speedy says, "we judge a person by their own merit, not their super's."

I nod. That's the smartest thing I've heard come out of any of their mouths yet. "So what's this classified information?"

Supergirl still looks unsure but she relents anyways. "Okay, fine. It's what Superman said to me right before he disappeared. I could hear him because of my super hearing. He trained me to fine tune it enough so that only key words catch my attention instead of me hearing everything enough. One of the words is my name. Here, I started writing it down as soon as he started talking." She pulls a folded piece of paper from her pocket and hands it to me.

I open it. The other guys look over my shoulder. "Nice handwriting," I murmur. It's generic girl handwriting, large letters and happy looking a's.

Supergirl...don't have much time. Something bad...to happen...Fog...You must assemble... sidekicks. You'll know why. Make a...group...track us down. Batman saw this coming...I should have listened...look...Batman's sidekick. And be brave, cousin, and be

The writing stops. I'm gripping it hard, my stomach in my throat.

"That's it?" Speedy asks, sounding disappointed.

"Yeah, then he just stops talking. If it was someone else...I would have thought he was..." She sniffs.

Kid Flash throws an arm around her shoulder. "Don't worry, babe, we'll figure it out."

Aqualad is studying the note. "I notice there are some words missing. Why is that?"

Supergirl shrugs Kid off before answering. "I couldn't hear everything he said. I'm still in training, remember?"

Speedy frowns. "And what's this about Batman's sidekick? Batman doesn't have a sidekick."

"Yeah," Kid Flash agrees, "and if he did, that guy would be awesome. Could you imagine? He would be like...Batkid!"

Speedy snorts. "Just because you guys just use your mentors' names in your names doesn't mean everyone has to."

"Sorry, _Speedy Gonzales_. I guess we just don't have you style," Kid rolls his eyes.

"Whatever _Kid_ Flash, Aqua_lad_, and Super_girl_. Robin gets me, right," Speedy looks at me for support.

"Uh, yeah sure." I decide not to tell them that the villains I've encountered like to call me (sarcastically) the "Boy Wonder." But honestly, I'm still thinking about the letter. Fog...Batman mentioned fog too.

"...we should check out his place. I've got the coordinates for the Bat-cave and Gotham's not that far from here—"

"Wait, what?" I frown at them. "We are not going to the Bat-cave."

"No, _we're_ not," Speedy says. "_You_ can go back to wherever you call home. We're going to investigate. Superman mentions Batman twice. No way that's a coincidence. So go on, fly back to your nest, little birdie." He brushes past me.

"You can't go to the Bat-cave," I say, suddenly desperate. Batman's rules rush through my head. Number 3 is never let someone into the Bat-cave. _Never_.

"Actually, we can. The coordinates are right here in the League files." Supergirl pats the computer happily. "The Cave is right outside of Gotham. And there's even a huge landmark to guide us there." She squints at the screen. "Wayne Manor."

I make a face as I stare at her. Honestly, I can't believe how stupid people are sometimes. Even when they have big obvious connections staring them right in the face, no one realizes who Batman really is. Oh, you want to know where the Bat-cave is? You know, the place where Batman goes when he's not using super expensive tech to fight super villains with his thirteen-year-old sidekick? Yeah, it's right next to the Wayne Manor where the super rich millionaire Bruce Wayne lives mysteriously with his thirteen-year-old ward. I shake my head. "Well, don't you think it'll be a little more difficult than just driving up? I mean, Batman will have security, and lots of tech in between you and the door. You won't just be able to waltz in without any—"

"We don't have to," Kid Flash interrupts me. "We've also got the number for Batman's 'sidekick'. Where have you been?"

Thinking. "What do you mean you've got his number?"

"His number for his League Alert device. And it may be a girl," Supergirl says, throwing Kid a look. She turns back to me. "No name, no nothing. Just a number. Superman always said Batman likes to be mysterious."

She has no idea. "I still think—"

"We have wasted enough time," Aqualad interjects. "Speedy, can you drive yet?"

Speedy shifts, looking uncomfortable. "I've got my permit, but—"

"Then let's be off. The League has some cars around back. Robin, you are either in or out."

I have no desire to let these kids find out about me or get into the Cave. That's too many of Batman's rules broken in one day. "I'll pass."

"Well, thanks for all your help at least," Speedy says sarcastically. The others wave to me and exit through a door behind the stage.

I want the door close behind them before looking down at the card I palmed from his pocket when Speedy brushed into me earlier. It's going to be hard for them to get anywhere if Speedy doesn't have his license. It's not even a license, but a permit. I shake my head in disgust. It's even for his real identity, Roy Harper, and not a Justice League certified one like all of mine are so that they only identify me as Robin.

But that'll only slow them down temporarily. Superheroes have a real problem with morals. Driving without a license is one such problem. So it'll buy me thirty minutes at the most.

I go through the doors back the way I came. The city seems to have woken up a little and people snap pictures as I walk by. Like they don't see costumed vigilantes everyday. I ignore them as I push open the glass doors and walk back into the blinding sunlight.

Outside, I see that a group of older guys have gathered around my bike. I immediately jump into high alert.

They look up as I approach. "Hey, junior, where's your daddy? Is this his bike?"

My hand twitches to the pocket on my belt where I keep my throwing stars. Batman's training comes back to me as I survey the guy who spoke.

He's got sun bleached blonde hair and a lazy eye that requires corrective lenses to fix but this guy probably thinks he's too cool to wear them. His clothes are rumpled but nice enough that I think he's probably rich and couldn't care less. His nose looks like it's been broken twice which means that he's either incredibly clumsy or starts fights he can't win. The lump in his front pocket is too thick to be an iPhone which means his parents are old fashioned so they gave him a basic slide or flip phone, and they probably don't know where he is right now (terrorizing younger kids and such). Its position in his right pocket shows that he's probably right handed which means if he's going to throw a punch, he'll lead with his left foot.

My mind takes this all in in less than a second and I smile easily back at him. "No, it's mine."

"You playing hero or something?" He chuckles and his friends laugh along with him. I do a brief survey of them but determine that if I take down their leader, the others will probably go running.

"What, did the costume give it away?" I smile cockily at him. "You're smarter than you look."

There, that got the expected rise out of him. His face is red. One down side to bringing all your cronies with you everywhere. They see you when you lose too.

"No reply? Do I have to dumb I down for you?" I say the last part really slowly.

Beach Boy grunts angrily. Seriously, grunting?

I watch his eyes flicker to my stomach, where he wants to hit me. I grin. "Careful. Or I'll tell Mommy you're not at the library like you said you were." That last part is just a guess, I passed a library on my way over here. But something tells me this guy isn't very bright so cliché excuses to his folks are right up his alley.

Beach Boy's eyes widen and his friends are exchanging incredulous looks. "How did you—"

"I read it all over your face you big ape," I say. This needs to get done fast before Speedy gets over his moral dilemma or the Sidekick Brigade decides to take a bus.

"That's it—" Beach Boy steps with his left foot towards me, his right hand pulled back in a fist. I prepare myself. Now, little hint for all those villains out there, when you say little things like, "that's it" or "now you're gonna pay" it kinda gives away what you're going to do next.

I move slightly to the side as Beach Boy punches at me and grab his arm to carry his momentum forward. At the same time, I use my other hand to send a lightning quick jab at his nose. I think that might be a weak spot for him, and sure enough, he squeals like a baby even though I barely tapped him. I kick his lead leg out from underneath him and he spins around, carried by his own momentum and completely off balance, to hit the ground on his butt behind me. He checks his nose for blood as he stares up at me.

"Sloppy, very sloppy," I say. And then I laugh. Hearing that, the other guys run off and soon their leader follows, gripping his newly re-broken nose.

My laugh isn't really...normal. It's not really the tough guy, "Har, har, har, take that evil doer," kind of thing. It's sounds just as confident but is more high pitched. Its the laugh of a kid who knows what he's doing and might just be crazy enough to kill you. It's the kind of laugh that sends chills down your spine when you hear it in the night, bouncing and echoing off the walls and streets of the city. Batman even told me once that it gave him the willies. The laugh is quickly becoming my trademark since when the villains hear it, they immediately know it's me. And that the Bat's not far behind.

I still have a stupid grin on my face as I turn back around. My joy quickly evaporates though. The tourists are on the other side of the glass in the Hall, taking pictures like crazy. When they see me looking their way, the shrink back, like I can't still see them through the glass. Oh great, I can imagine the headlines now. "New Hero, Robin, Starts Off His Day Terrorizing the Citizens of Star City." Batman's going to kill me.

I hop on my bike and, after a quick verse of "Robin slaves for Batman," I'm on my way. I have to beat the others to Gotham, figure out how they're going to think they're meeting Batman's sidekick without actually doing so, and somehow stop them from getting too far into the Bat-cave.

Easy peasy.

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I know how long this chapter was. Isn't great? More to read!

Next we see the plot thicken as a villain emerges. CaN yOu HaNdLe It?

*youwishyouwerethiscool


	4. Chapter 4

First off, thanks for all the reviews! I'm excited, aren't you? Robin's going to officially "meet" everyone now. But knowing Robin, he's got some trick already up his sleeve ;). Can't wait!

BTW, I know Robin was suppose to already know Kaldur, Wally, and Roy. I wanted to make this a little more exciting plus I love first impressions.

I'm not going to post everyday. I actually have the whole story already written out from start to finish, but I want to put you guys in at least _some_ suspense.

I don't own DC comics or its characters. I do own my Batman Rules and this plot line though.

Enjoy!

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4

I'm all set and I'm up in a tree. That's right, the Robin's in his nest. People can make fun of that all they like. I embrace it.

Through my binoculars, I'm watching the Four Musketeers clumsily make their way though the forest to the Cave. They sure took their sweet time getting here.

Enough time for me to sneak into the Bat-cave, lock down all important files and double encrypt them, and grab my stealth suit. It's all black, though designed the same as my other outfit. There's also a part that wraps around my head and goggles that cover my eyes.

I also had enough time to ride to a costume store and buy a pair of fake foam muscle pads that I'm currently wearing under my suit to make me look more ripped that I actually am. It was almost a cliché: Robin going to a store to buy some muscles. Stupid.

But it worked. I caught a look at myself on the way over here and I look pretty darn scary. Not at all like I usually do. With a little voice modification magic, no one will ever be the wiser.

So now here I am. In my tree outside the Cave. And it's starting to rain again. I don't mind, it actually feels good. The others though... I can hear them complaining from here.

"How can Gotham be so close to Star City but so gloomy?" Supergirl asks, hugging herself and shivering.

Funny, I was wondering the same thing, except I was wondering how Star City can be so happy when it's so close to Gotham.

"GA told me it literally never stops raining here. Just this, all day long," Speedy gestured at the sky.

I frown at that. It stopped raining this morning for a moment. And who is "GA"? Oh, I see, Green Arrow. So they're familiar enough with each other that they use short hand when they talk?

"When are we going to get there, Kara? I just want to call this guy and get inside." Kid Flash looks impatient.

But "Kara"? So they all know each other's secret IDs? That throws me through a loop for a second.

"Quiet, _Wally_. We're on a mission so it's code names only." Supergirl shoves him. Really? Shoving?

"I do not see why you three do not like the rain," Aqualad states. "It is a nice reprieve from the scorching desert of Star City. Don't humans play in lakes and pools anyways? How is this any different?"

"The difference is, I don't _want_ to be wet," Speedy says.

"Why would you not—"

"Shhh, we're here." Supergirl holds up and hand, stopping them. "Okay, I'm going to call the number. You guys stay quiet." She presses out the numbers on the device she's been carrying.

They all jump when it starts to ring right next to them in some bushes, where I put my earbud earlier after cranking it up as loud as it can go.

As they are turned, searching the bushes, I silently climb down from the tree and step out of the shadows.

"Nope, no one here."

"Wait, look," Aqualad holds up my earpiece. "He was trying to lose us."

"No, actually, I wasn't." They jump and spin around to look at me. My voice sounds deeper, like I'm older and tougher. And cooler. I grin under my mask, even though they can't see it.

"Who are you?" Supergirl asks.

I pause. Okay, quick. Come up with a name that's not stupid, relates to Batman, and sounds cool. "I...am Nightwing." I grin again. Yeah, that works. "And I believe you have been looking for me."

They all just stare at me for the longest time. "Nightwing?"

I nod once. "Did I stutter?" That sounds like a good tough guy phrase.

"Uh, what? No, I mean—" Supergirl glances at the others. "No, it's cool. Just...unexpected, that's all. How long have you been out here?"

What, was she worried I'd catch a cold? "Long enough." Another good one. Man, I am on fire today.

"We were wondering, perhaps, Nightwing, if you could get us access to the Bat-cave?" Aqualad asks.

"It's an emergency," Kid Flash says.

"We need intel and we think searching Batman's stuff might provide some answers," Speedy says, cutting right to the chase.

I stand there silently for a moment, pretending to think it over. "No."

"No?" Now I've really confused them. "We're on official League business! This is hindering an operation! You could get suspended!" This all from Supergirl who still has got that newbie morality about her.

"Oh, no," I say blandly. "But seriously. You're not going in there." I know for a fact they won't find anything in there. Batman wasn't even in the Cave when he disappeared. I scanned through the surveillance feeds while I was up in the tree waiting to get this ball rolling. And what I found out is that Batman was actually in his office in the Manor at the last recording. There's nothing after that, only static. Undeniably, it's when Batman disappeared. But there is _no way_ I'm letting them investigate my home for stuff I already know. No thank you.

"But...you have to let us in." Poor Supergirl actually sounds like she might cry. "League policy."

"I'm pretty new at this," I lie, turning my head so she knows I'm looking directly at her when I speak, "why don't you tell me what exactly the policy is?"

"All heroes sanctified by the Justice League must abide by their terms and restrictions including investigations and emergencies," she rattles off quickly, like a good sidekick.

I make to take a step back, bored with the conversation. "Oh, well, I suppose now I'll _have_ to let you in."

Aqualad frowns at my sarcasm. "Just who do you think you are? Aren't you the least bit concerned with what happened to Batman?"

"No," I lie easily, even though my stomach twists on the inside.

"Well, we tried talking to him," Speedy says, notching an arrow. "Now time for plan B."

I stare at he points the arrow at me. My stomach twists again but this time for a whole different reason. "You're going to fight me?" I ask, incredulous.

"Not if we don't have to," Supergirl's feet have left the ground and her eyes are starting to get red, threatening to cook me with lasers.

"Just let us into the Cave, dude," Kid Flash adjusts his goggles.

Aqualad is preparing for a fight too, his twin two foot long poles in his hands and looking like they're ready to do some damage. The rain drops bend towards the poles like their attracted to them.

These guys sure do look threatening. It's almost a relief that they don't know who I am. Still, kinda sucks to fight them...

I reach down to my utility belt and in one smooth move, pull out a smoke bomb and throw it at the ground. A hissing noise ensues and black smoke engulfs us. Not white smoke like in plays or movies, but black smoke. That way civilians don't wander over, going "Where'd all this fog come from?" Black smoke doesn't make them want to be curious enough to find out.

I get out of there as quickly and quietly as I can. I can hear them shouting out to each other through the pitched blackness. I make towards the tree line when suddenly something clips me in the shoulder. I spin around, my armor and padding having protected me from most of the blow. It's a red arrow. Speedy fired at me blind?

No, not blind. I curse myself for being so stupid. Supergirl has X-ray vision. I ready in her file that she's not as advanced as Superman and she can't see through solid objects but apparently she can see perfectly fine through smoke.

I turn and run, grabbing a low hanging limb as I do so and flip myself in the trees. I run from branch to branch with perfect balance. It almost comes second nature to me to feel my feet grip each crevice and calculate how hard I have to push in order to reach the next one.

As I run, I think of my options. Leading them to the city would be good, since I can probably lose them there. I know the terrain better than they do. But I would have to run the whole way since I can't summon my motorcycle. It would way too obvious that Nightwing doesn't drive a bright red bike with a yellow R on the side. Stupid, why did Batman have to make me so recognizable?

My other option is the Bat-mobile, but even I'm not ready for that. It would make him seem like he's really...gone. No, I guess I'm going to stick to hoofing it.

Luckily, my training included _lots_ of running. I'm already light on my feet and since I'm not super strong, I have to rely on my speed. My cape billows behind me, probably making me look really awesome but slowly me down at the same time.

But I know Rule 658: You'll regret the day you forget your cape. It might save your life.

Or kill me, very slowly. I'm only just starting to get winded by the time I start seeing some buildings appear. I take the nearest fire escape and scrabble to the roofs for some more leaping. Supergirl may be able to fly, but her friends can't. Maybe this will slow them down.

After a while, the buildings start getting higher, and I turn my leaping motion into a front flip to get more air. I pause on the top of an insurance agency headquarters to catch my breath. I had to have lost them by now, right?

Then I hear panting and low voices not far behind me. They're trying to be quiet and doing a really bad job of it.

I pull out my grappling hook and shoot it at the closest skyscraper. Luckily, I've had lots of practice doing something like that. It's harder than it looks. The hook sticks in the first try.

I jump off the building and reel myself up, Batman's tech making only the smallest whirling noise as it yanks me up the side of the building.

As soon as I get to the top of the building, I jump off. Simple avoidance techniques. Do the unexpected. After all that work of getting to the top, nobody following me would think I would just jump off the next second.

As I fall, I press a finger to my left hand wrist and my cape stiffens. I gently hang-glide down to the next to closest building and continue like that until I'm on the ground once more. The cape might not save my life, but it did give me a fun way to show off. Some people _ooh_ and _aww_ when they see the familiar black cape swooping through the air. I also feel sort of guilty, like I'm tricking them all into thinking that everything's okay, that nothing happened to the Bat.

I roll when I hit the asphalt of a side alley and pop back up quickly. There, that had to have lost them now.

I reach behind my back to hit the release button that un-stiffens my cape. (It's on the back so I don't accidentally hit it in midair and plummet to my doom.) But as I do so, my hand brushes against a small round object stuck to my shoulder. I pull it off and study it.

Well, I had wondered why Speedy was shooting me with dull arrows. Seemed pointless. Guess not. I frown at the tracker in my fingers. So that's how they're following me.

With one swift motion I throw the tracker on the ground and crush it with my foot. It makes a satisfying crunching noise.

I crouch down low in the shadows and freeze, becoming invisible. I watch the people of Gotham go about their daily lives. It may be raining, but we here in Gotham aren't going to let that stop us from taking a leisurely stroll.

Suddenly, I hear a woman's scream, not far off. Then a man calling for help. I see some civilians go for their phones, ready to call the police, but I'm already on the move.

Taking a backstreet, I shimmy up a drainage pipe to the roof of an apartment building. From there, I'm able to pinpoint the screams when I hear them again.

I rush across rooftops until I'm directly over where the screams are centered. I look down, getting a feel for the situation.

I immediately get the sense that something's not right. The man and woman are middle aged and wealthy, but they don't carry themselves with any type of confidence at all. Usually, wealthy people think money will get them out of any situation with ease. They're clothes are clearly upperclass, but that doesn't explain why they're in this slum neighborhood. Not to mention the man robbing them has a gun pointed at them but he doesn't seem to care that they're screaming for help. In fact, he hasn't moved, still standing completely still and at ease, not shouting at the woman to hand over her necklace or the man his wallet.

But...I have to do something. Batman doesn't usual interfere with normal crimes unless someone is really in danger. But he always makes an exception for armed robberies. No matter what we're doing, he has us stop and take out the man (or sometimes even woman) quickly and harshly. I once asked Alfred about it, and he said that the Bat had a hard childhood. I don't know what that means, but I have my suspicions.

I just about to measure up the guy with the gun to see if I can take him out from a distance when suddenly a girl's voice echoes through the alley.

"Stop, in the name of Justice!"

Oh no. I sink farther into the shadows and groan softly to myself as I watch the Sidekick Brigade come jogging up (flying, in Supergirl's case).

The robber and even the man and woman getting robbed stare at them in confusion. "What are you doing in Gotham?"

Supergirl now looks unsure. "Saving...you?"

The robber lowers the gun and spins around to point it at Aqualad. I expect the couple to run away, but they don't. The actually pull out concealed weapons as well and point them at Kid and Speedy. Stupid, I didn't even think to check them for weapons even though they were acting suspicious.

Now everyone in the situation is confused.

"Well, you guys ain't the sidekick we were sent here for..." The fake robber sneers. "But you kids will do just as fine. Saves us a trip."

"Enough talk. Enlighten us, would you?" Speedy asks, arrow notched, but unsure who to point it at.

The robber smirks. "You think I'm that dumb kid? Now come quietly or I shoot his kneecaps out," he gestures with the gun at Aqualad.

"Who do you think has faster reflexes?" Kid Flash asks confidently.

The woman answers, "You take one step and I'll shoot you too."

They seem to be stuck. Time for me to interfere.

I grab some throwing stars from a pocket on my belt and throw all three at once. All three guns clatter to the ground but before the surprised bad guys can even utter a word, I'm on them.

The first man, the one who was posing as the terrified richy-rich guy, is easy to take out. Limited training in boxing it seems. He gets one nice hit in, but my fake muscles act like I'm wearing full catcher's gear and I don't even feel it. One swift uppercut and he's out for the count. The woman is a a little harder. She's at least a black belt in karate and knows some pretty good defensive moves. She grabs my arm and tries to flip me, but I roll in the air with it and land on my feet only to grab her other arm and flip her in practically the same move. Her head smacks into the brick alley wall.

By this time, the others have awoken from their day dream and are taking down the robber guy, who seems to be the toughest assailant. He's doing pretty well for a non-powered human.

It doesn't help that the four of them keep getting in each other's way. Speedy keeps trying to be involved in the fight, even though he's better suited for long range assaults. Kid could get some good hits in if he stopped running around and actually hit the guy. And Aqualad is being too cautious, like he doesn't want to accidentally hurt him.

Supergirl is hovering above, trying to offer advice. That's smart; at least she knows that supers with powers like her's aren't needed in every fight. But I also know from her file that she has very little experience actually fighting someone. She's saved children in school buses, people in burning buildings, even cats in trees. But I don't think she's ever been in an actual combat situation.

I watch them for a few more moments before deciding that it'll take them too long to finish this. I step forward and hit a pressure point on the back of the guy's neck, making him drop like a sack of potatoes.

Speedy looks disappointed. "But I totally had him."

"Right," I grunt.

Aqualad sounds disgruntled as he says, "It was not necessary for you to interfere."

"Right," I say again.

Supergirl flies down, frowning. "Well, that was odd. I wonder why they wanted to trick us into helping them just so they could jump us."

"I dunno," I say, "but I'm about to find out." I bend down and grab the guy by the front of the shirt and hoist him to his knees. He's unstable, so I have to support him somewhat. His legs and arms might not work but his mouth and eyes do.

"Please, be reasonable now. I meant them kids no harm..." He squints at me. "Wait, you're not Batman. Who are you?"

"I'll ask the questions." Using my foot, I flip the gun he dropped earlier in my hand. It's dented on one side from where my throwing star hit it. He gun feels wrong in my hand and almost dirty. I swallow back bile as I cock it. He gets the message, eyes wide.

"Why did you try to set us up?" I ask, my voice still deep from my vocal modifier.

"Set you up? No—I..." The guy stops when I shake him hard by the front of his shirt.

"Don't lie," I say. "My trigger finger's getting antsy."

He pales and chokes out, "Our orders were to capture Batman's sidekick along with every other sidekick to a Justice League hero."

"Well, you have found them," Aqualad says darkly.

The robber blinks. He looks me up and down. "Then who are you?"

"He's Batman's sidekick, Nightwing," Kid Flash says.

"What? But that's not Batman's sidekick. He's—"

I clap my hand over his mouth. "We obviously can't trust him. He'll spit out nothing out but lies."

Supergirl glares at me. "We obviously can't trust you either? You _lied_ to us! You said you were the sidekick to Batman."

The guy tries to bit down on my hand and he swears when he practically breaks his teeth on my glove.

Supergirl walks over. She pulls my hand away from the guy without any trouble, being super strong and all. "Tell me, who is Batman's real sidekick."

I sigh. Batman's Rule Number 323 is if you have a confession to make, make sure your the one to make it. Otherwise it'll become an accusation. "You really want to know," I ask, "fine. I'll tell you." I unwrap the full mask from my head. I'm still wearing my smaller mask underneath though. I look at Superigirl who gasps when she recognizes me.

"You! You're that...guy..." She bits her lip.

"Seriously? You don't remember?" I cross my arms.

"I do—I do. It's...Bird Boy, right?"

"No," the robber guy says from where he's slumped up against the wall. He's staring at me. "Robin." He gives a gurgling laugh. "First comes the anagnorisis, and the peripeteia soon shall follow."

We stare still him. A few moments ago he had seemed perfectly sane, and now he's spouting nonsense. Maybe I had shaken a screw loose when I was fighting him. I remove the voice modifier and speak in my normal voice. "Who sent you to do this?"

The guy shakes his head wildly. "No...they'll kill me...no..."

"Who? Who are you talking about? It's either their secrets or your insides." I gesture to make sure he knows I'm holding the gun but I still don't point it at him. It just doesn't feel right.

The robber doesn't seem to suspect my apprehension. He goes pale at the sight of the gun and mumbles something under his breath.

"What'd he say?" Kid asks.

"Speak up!"

"I don't know! I don't know who payed us, we just take the money. No questions." I can see his resolve crumbling.

"What happened to the League members?" I ask.

"Didn't know anything happened to them at all."

"How many goons like you three are out there?"

"Dunno, hundreds? In every city. Gathering up all the other sidekicks right now, I suppose."

I look up, alarmed and turn to Supergirl. She looks as shocked as I feel. "Try to contact them," I say.

She nods and brings out the device that she used as a GPS earlier. "This is Supergirl. All sidekicks please respond. This is an emergency."

Nothing but static. Just like I heard in my last call from Batman.

The guy groans. "We're the only ones that failed. Great. No payment."

I give him a look that makes him make a face like he's trying to swallow his tongue. I crouch down in front of him. "Are we the only ones left?"

"Yes—I mean other than independent heroes, and they'll be taken care of too, soon. It's a dangerous time to wear tights." He chuckles at his own joke, still slouched and prone against the wall.

Aqualad gives him a look of disgust. "Why would someone do this? What is their motive?"

"They don't pay me enough to ask who's mind is wacky enough to hunt heroes," the guy says.

"Why do they like Robin so much?" Speedy asks, giving me a sideways look.

The guy's eyes glaze over. "Robin...first comes the anagnorisis, and the peripeteia soon shall follow."

"Yeah, we got that one already." I frown. "He doesn't know much. My guess is there's some type of brainwashing happening to him every time they give him his 'payments'. I doubt he's received a penny. That's when the automatic response to my name has been programmed as well."

The goon's eyes have gotten wider and his face paler with every word I've said. "Brainwashing..._no_ _payment_...?"

"Sorry buddy," Kid Flash says.

"What should we do with them?" Speedy points at the two unconscious people and the guy still slumped against the wall.

I glance at them. "The woman's out cold, the one guy will be out for another minute or so, and this guy's already got most of his feeling back in his body but is pretending otherwise so that he can surprise us."

He jumps up as soon as I say this, but Speedy reacts fast and kicks him hard in the chest and he hits the wall and lies still. He smirks at me. "Told you I had him."

I resist rolling my eyes. "Come on. We should get out of here. These guys won't be out for long."

Aqualad eyes me warily. "What do you suggest we do?"

"As this guy so adequately put it, it's no longer safe to wear the tights. We need somewhere where we'll be safe." I ground my teeth together. "We're going to the Bat-cave."

Kid Flash frowns. "But I thought you said that place was a big no-no."

"It...it is. But desperate times call for desperate measures." Rule 46. "Now come on." I pull myself up onto the closest fire escape. After a moment's hesitation, the others follow.

Something is severely wrong. And I'm beginning to think the only way to solve this problem is by taking a closer look at those security tapes from when the Bat disappeared...

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Oh, Nightwing. Lol. I crack myself up. XD.

Anagnorisis, and the peripeteia! Look them up to find out what they mean. They're real words, I promise.

Robin being awesome, some cool tech, and the plot thickens. Pretty good overall.

I hoped you liked it. I know you did! Please tell me!

youwishyouwerethiscool


	5. Chapter 5

Here's the next chapter. Thank you all for reviews! This one's annoyingly short so I'm uploading chapter 6 right after this. Love, love, love Robin stories so much so that I overlook their poor grammar and even poor plot line. As long as they have Robin in them.

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5

I'm sitting at the computer, changing back into my normal Robin uniform. I ditched the fake muscles and I feel back to my old, slightly disappointing-looking self.

I made the others wait outside for me while I did so. I had accidentally left my uniform in the connected Wayne Manor which might have been awkward (it being a whole secret identity crisis thing). But after I'm changed, I immediately seal off the tunnel that leads to the mansion and press the button to let the four of them in.

Their jaws drop to the floor as they look around. I've practically grown up in here, so I don't see anything too amazing anymore.

There's Batman's various weapons and gadgets hanging up against one wall. That isn't even all of them either. The wall actually rotates around and has two other sides.

Those weapons are in the front of the Cave for easy access. After that, the Cave really opens up.

A metal walkway runs, suspended over the water, in all directions. On the sides of the Cave, parked next to various doorways out of here, are a helicopter, a boat, a tank, a plane, a motorcycle, and, of course, the Bat-mobile. All painted the classic Batman black.

On the other side of the cave are Batman's computers which can hook up to any system in the world. The monitor overhead right now is alerting me that people who's biometric signatures don't match the database have entered the Cave. I sigh and deactivate it.

"So this is the Bat-cave." Kid Flash suddenly becomes a blur. When he speaks again, he's over next to the car. "Is this the Bat-mobile?"

"Yeah," I say. "Please don't touch it. Don't touch anything actually."

"Do you live here?" Supergirl asks, looking around in wonder.

"Yeah—I perch in the rafters and Batman hangs from the ceiling. No, we have an actual house to live in. Do you live in the League headquarters?"

Supergirl blushes and turns away from me.

"She was just asking, Robin," Aqualad says, his voice sounding like he's scolding me.

Now it's my turn to look away. I scan the monitors, half hoping there will be a message from Batman on one. "I've gone to get some more milk, don't wait up." But there's nothing.

The monitors instead show a steady stream of security camera feeds from all around the Bat-cave, the mansion, and Gotham.

"So what now?" Speedy asks.

There's silence for a few moments before Aqualad says, "We need to formulate a plan."

"But what?"

"Well, what do we know?"

"All the League members have disappeared without a trace. And I think it's safe to assume that the same thing has happened to the remaining sidekicks." Supergirl looks like she was trying to reach them again on her device. "Nobody else, it seems, was taken."

"That's not exactly true," I say. I've been watching the feeds from Wayne Manor and my suspicions have been confirmed. "My butler's gone."

"Your butler?" Speedy frowns at me. "Seriously? You're worried about that?"

Alfred was like family to me. He was the one bridge between both my worlds of being Dick Grayson and Robin. "It shows that he saw something so whoever took Batman felt like they had to cover their tracks. Makes them—whoever they are—seem a little bit more human if they can make mistakes like that. Plus, Alfred could have been used for leverage to get Batman to cooperate since—" Alfred was practically like a father to Bruce. But I can't say that. The others frown at me.

"If we are the last five true League superheroes left, I think we shouldn't have any secrets between us," Aqualad says.

I snort. Rule 867: people who don't have secrets aren't worth knowing.

"I agree," Supergirl says and the other two nod.

"I think...well, since it's obviously so dangerous being dressed and parading like a hero...perhaps we should drop the whole disguise thing. Just for a little while," Kid Flash adds hastily, seeing our faces, "and do some incognito work. We should be able to depend on each other. So we should try to trust each other with our identities."

I'm not sure I like where this is going. The others are nodding like it makes sense.

Kid Flash takes off his goggles and pulls off the hood-like part of his costume so we can see his slightly round face covered with freckles. "My name is Wally West."

"I am known by Kaldur'am." Aqualad bows his head slightly. "But you all may call me Kaldur."

"My name is Kara Zor-El," Supergirl adds, smiling slightly.

"And I'm Roy Harper," Speedy sighs, like he's just going along with the others. He peels away his mask.

They all look at me expectantly.

"Uh, yeah, nope." Too many of Batman's rules have been broken. If he's alive, he'll kill me for just showing myself to them.

"Robin," Kara says softly, "we're all that's left between whatever took the Justice League and the people of the world. But if we're to succeed, we're going to have to make the sacrifice of the mask and the safety that comes with it. We need you, Robin."

I watch her eyes for a moment and gather that she's being sincere. I feel hopelessness seep through me. We really are all that's left. I suddenly feel so lonely. I feel the same need I felt earlier, the want of real friends that know both halves of me. I don't want to be alone. "Fine. Fine, fine, fine." I peel away my mask and meet each one of their gazes. It's now or never. "My real name is Dick Grayson."

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Don't freak out. All those Robin fans who are like "Robin would never reveal his secret ID!" It's chill, I've got it so it all works out in the end.

Review please!

youwishyouwerethiscool


	6. Chapter 6

Ta-dah! It's just as I said. Magic, huh? I like feedback so please give me some!

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6

"Cool," Kara says. "So our next step is..."

They all took it so lightly. But that was the biggest secret of my life. Of course, I realize, they already knew each other's identities. It's no big deal for them, telling people who they are. But my mind is still reeling and my heart is still beating much too fast.

"Dude, you awake?" Wally nudges me.

I blink, resurfacing. "What?"

"I asked if you have any evidence on camera of what happened to Batman?" Kaldur gestures to the monitors. "I mean, you do possess the knowledge to use these devices, right?"

I nod. "Yeah, since I was eight."

"When was that, a year ago?" Roy says sarcastically.

I glare at him and start typing, pulling up the footage for Bruce's study. "What I am about to show you, you must never tell anyone about. Or Batman will hunt you down and cut out your tongue so you never tell anyone anything ever again." They look at me nervously, like they think I might be joking. But I'm dead serious. I'd even help Batman do it. Slowly, they nod.

"Okay." I hit enter and the monitor plays back the footage from a couple of hours ago.

It's Batman, sitting at his desk. At home. Without a costume. Their eyes widen.

"I always knew he was handsome," Kara mutters, but the others stay silent.

I fast forward through the part where he tries to call me. He's looking out the window. I frown. There's a huge cloud of fog rolling in over the hills. Almost like it's a living thing. It's coming right for the house.

Bruce puts down his earpiece and looks around the room. He does a motion that I didn't see the first time I watched the playback. A double tap to his left shoulder. To an outsider, it almost looks like he vainly brushing himself off. But I know better.

I watch as my mentor bends down to look at the computer screen, and grabs his extra utility belt from a hidden compartment under his desk. He slings it over his shoulder—like he taught me to do in emergencies—and then turns to face the window and the oncoming fog.

Then there's a knock at his office door and Alfred's voice is heard. "Sir, there's someone here to see you—"

Then the feed cuts off and we're staring at a screen filled with static.

"Well..." Roy says eventually. "That told us nothing."

"Did you see how commando he got at the end? So awesome," Wally says. "He was all dramatic and sacrifice-y."

"Be nice," Kara elbows him and nods at me. "You alright, Dick?"

"Fine," I manage, staring at the snow filled screen, trying to process my thoughts.

Kaldur places a comforting hand on my shoulder. "It is alright. I didn't expect to find anything in the footage anyways."

I shake him off. "No, you're wrong. There was actually a lot there." I look at each of them. "What, none of you saw it?"

"Saw what?"

I sigh and square me shoulders. This is just like how Batman would test me. Show me a tape and tell me to tell him what I figured out from it. This is just routine. That thought actually makes me feel better.

"Batman knows he's being recorded. He put the camera there himself. From his worried but not surprised manner, in can deduce that he knew whatever that fog was and didn't like it. He knows that when I found him gone, I would check all the security footage searching for discrepancies." I rewind the footage until it shows Batman brushing off his shoulder again. "This is our hand signal for the room being bugged. It means that whatever follows bears special significance to the manner at hand." Rule 145, word for word.

"Then he looks down at the computer screen. Not a coincidence. Watch his eyes. Notice how they don't go to the top right hand corner of the screen, like one would if they were closing out of a program. Instead they follow the pattern of someone saving a document." I zoom in on his face. "See, top left, then middle left, continue to middle for confirmation. His eye movements are over-exaggerated, and he went through the trouble of taking the long way to save something. He clearly wants me to know that whatever he was looking at is important.

"And him slinging the utility belt over his shoulder like that signifies that this is an emergency, but really anyone can figure that out with the whole looming fog and last stand pose he strikes up." I glance over my shoulder, wondering if they're rolling their eyes at me. Batman would always point out something I missed. But I quickly swivel around when I see the looks on their faces. "What's wrong?" I ask, alarmed.

They're all gaping at me.

"Dick...how the heck did you do that?" Wally sputters.

"That was incredible," Kara says, her face breaking out into a huge smile. "And you got all that from just a two minute video?"

"Uh, yeah." I'm blushing now. I don't think I've ever gotten praise like that before. The most Batman's ever done is say, "Do it like that on the field and it probably won't get you killed." It's actually a little awkward.

"You truly are a sidekick to Batman, " Kaldur says, shaking his head in wonderment.

"Not bad," Roy mutters, but he's giving me a look that could almost be respect.

"It's not that hard," I say, turning away from them, typing to avoid speaking.

"So what was the file? Should we go to that study to—"

"I've already pulled it up," I say. Immediately, a familiar logo fills the screen. I push away from the computer. Now I'm confused. I expected to be some track record of a criminal, or perhaps a huge picture of some evil guy who wants revenge on the League. I should have known Batman would be less obvious.

It's a webpage. A webpage belonging to a school's website. The list of all the after school clubs.

"Gotham Central High School?" Roy reads out loud, sounding just as confused as I feel. "A public school?"

"Right next to my school," I choke out. "That's where our next clue is?"

"You're in high school?" Wally glances at me. "But you said you were thirteen."

I know what he's thinking. He wasn't the youngest for once. "I am. My school and Central are arch rivals."

"And you're school is..."

I sigh and grimace as I say, "Gotham Academy for Gifted and Accelerated Children." It's like an advanced middle school that competes with everyone on the high school level.

The look on their faces is exactly the reason why I don't tell people where I go to school. Like when Bruce used to take me to charity balls or social gatherings, all I had to do was say I went to the Academy and suddenly I'm hailed like a genius. Don't get me wrong, there are some genii at the Academy, but most of the kids are just rich and had mommy and daddy buy their way into the school. That's why we have a problem with Gotham Central. One year, our little wimpy private school football team beat theirs in the championship. Total upset. The same year, their debate team beat out ours at the finals (there actually is a genius, Wanda Wrozonski, on the debate team, but she was sick that week). Everyone was screaming fouls and fair play and we've been basically enemies ever since.

The thing is, the kids who go to the private school apparently aren't that smart but are athletic, and the kids going to public were apparently brilliant and lethargic. It broke stereotypes everywhere. Ever since then, our schools have always managed to go head to head in every championship-final-contest there is. I myself have even led the scholastic team to victory against them.

So of course I couldn't help but get caught up in the bitterness myself. But I wasn't about to say anything to the others. Already I could see them starting to view me as a pompous, pampered, private school prat.

"So what could the clue be?" Kaldur asks, leaning in to the screen.

"Looks like a list of the clubs," I say, shaking myself out of my thoughts.

"Why would Batman leave this as a clue?" Kara says.

"Maybe he didn't and Bird Boy brought up the wrong thing," says Roy.

"No, this is it." I had uploaded a direct link from the Bat's computer. A simple ten digit passcode was all it took. DynamicDuo. The nickname Batman says he wants us to take when I go public.

Wally's eyes are a blur as he reads through the list. "Seems pretty normal to me."

Kara lifts off the ground slightly so she can see over our heads. "Maybe it's encoded or something."

I'm shaking my head before she's finished. "Nope. This is a legitimate website." I scan the screen, searching for minor discrepancies. Something out of the ordinary. "Wait a minute..." I bring the mouse down to hover next to a specific club. "Check it out. See anything?"

Roy squints at the screen. "eYawn? 'The club for online sleepers. Are you bored with technology? Sign up for eYawn to have some quality face to face time with other people and play fun games such as Monopoly! No phones allowed!' What am I suppose to be seeing?"

"A club where you play board games and can't have your phone with you? Yuck," Wally sniffs.

I sigh. Do they really not see it? "eYawn. It's an anagram for Wayne. Batman's real last name. And that's not all. There's only three people in the club."

"I'm not surprised," Wally says.

I roll my eyes. "Even the chess club has more members than that. But what I mean is that the box below says 'not admitting any new members'. With only three people?"

"Maybe they like close knit groups," Kaldur suggests.

"Never make assumptions," I say. Rule 664. "And they just so happen to be meeting today at three."

We automatically look at the clock. 3:07.

They exchange looks.

"We might as well check it out," Kaldur says. The others nod their consent.

I smirk. "Great. Now we need to change."

"Why?" Kara seems surprised. She looks down at her red, white, and blue ensemble.

"He means we can't go to a normal school dressed like this," Roy says, catching on. Look who's the smart one.

I look them over. "Um, I don't think any of my clothes will fit you guys." They're all bigger than me except for Kara, but she's a girl, and I'm not sure if she would want my clothes.

"That's fine. Flash has me store extra clothes all over town," Wally says.

"Same," Roy says and Kaldur and Kara nod in agreement.

"But we shouldn't go out alone," I say. "There might still be people about looking to trap us like that fake robber guy."

Kaldur nods. "We shall go together to each of the places. Watch each other's backs." Kaldur frowns. "After all, we're all we have left."

And on that happy thought, we depart.

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Robin is a genius. Pretty incredible, huh? Effortlessly brilliant. Next chapter you guys will get to meet some of my own little characters and someone else you may or may not know. And Robin will keep getting more epic!

~youwishyouwerethiscool


	7. Chapter 7

This is a looong chapter. I hope you like it. I don't own any characters except Hunter and Raina. They're my own.

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7

Luckily, we change fast. It literally took Wally two seconds to change into a loud Hawaiian shirt and cargo pants. Kara went into a bathroom a superhero and emerged a cheerleader—pink skirt and all. Kaldur looked more normal with his hoodie and jeans but his white hair would make him stand out. Roy let him borrow a baseball hat when he changed. He himself put on the whole leather-jacket-and-sunglasses look which he claims to have just thrown together, but he took even longer than Kara.

We stop by my house for me to change. I grab something out of my closet and throw it on. I slick back my hair out of my face. When I'm Robin, I just leave my hair alone. It's getting long on top and I have to brush it to the side to stop it from falling into my eyes. But when I'm in civilian mode, I have it combed back off my face. Batman always said that hair is one way we get used to recognizing people's faces. That's why when he's going undercover, he grows out a beard. You'd be surprised just how much facial hair changes the shape of someone's face.

I emerged from my room and close the door quietly. The house feels so empty without Alfred clopping around downstairs or Bruce typing in the study.

Everyone is sitting in the family room, talking in low voices, discussing the plan of action. They seems uncomfortable in the roomy, formal area. They look up as I enter.

Kara looks me over. "Not bad." She smirks. "But I thought we said we were going casual."

I look down at myself. Khakis with a navy blue polo. "This is my casual." Everything else in my closet are either suits or my uniform for school.

"What, do you wear that when you go down to the country club?" Roy asks sarcastically.

I'm about to reply with a pithy comment like "yes" when Kaldur interrupts us.

"Enough. We must think of something. It is now 3:20. Who knows how long the...eYawners...will be meeting."

"I say we confront them and be all like, 'Hey do you guys know the Batman?' And then they'll say yes and we can all go save the world," Wally says, matter-of-factly. He's eating an entire family size bag of potato chips. He must have gotten into the pantry while I was changing.

Roy snorts, "That's dumb."

I shrug. "I dunno, we don't really have enough info to formulate a real plan. Maybe it would be better just to wing it." I make a face. That's the closest Batman ever comes to a joke. A bat pun. Wing it. I'm disgusted that it's rubbed off on me.

"Okay...but we should have a cover. 'We're just really interested in joiner the eYawners and we think it can really help us become better people and stuff.'" She twirls a lock of hair in her fingers, her voice sounding very...stereotypical blond cheerleader. "How's that sound?"

Kaldur grins. "Perfect."

"But how are we going to get there? I mean, I'm all fueled up and ready to run, but I can't carry all of you," Wally says, tossing an empty bag of chips to the side.

"We'll drive, obviously," I say. Then I pause and look at Roy. "Oh, and by the way..." I take his license out of my pocket and hand it to him. He turns red with anger and embarrassment.

"You might want to hold onto that," I warn, "You'll never know when you're going to need it."

"You sly little—"

"Dick," Kaldur interrupts again, "can you drive? Roy is still a little...out of practice." He looks at his friend apologetically.

I cock an eyebrow. "Of course. Just name the car. We can't take the Bat-mobile for obvious reasons, plus Batman would kill me... Oh, I know which one we should take." I else them all through the house to the garage. Batman has his line of vintage cars all lined up and pretty. I select an old SUV; it's sporty but not flashy.

"Dude." Wally states, hopping in as soon as I unlock it. "You are officially my best friend."

"But I thought you were only thirteen," Kara says. Why do they keep bringing up my age?

"According to the city of Gotham, I'm seventeen but have a severe case of dwarfism." I show her the license. "I'm legal." I get behind the wheel and start the car. I grin as I adjust the mirrors. They're all set for someone taller.

Roy slides into the back and buckles his seatbelt. "God save us all."

We arrive at the school at 3:29. The entire time Roy was preaching traffic laws at me (which I ignored) and Kara kept pointing out signs like, "Hey, that was a stop sign. Can you see the speed limit? Um, wasn't that light red?" Honestly, it was sort of insulting. Batman says I drive fine. But, then again, it's not like any cop would dare pull him over in the Bat-mobile. I'll have to ask Alfred how I do if he's still...

I shake myself out of my reverie before I start getting upset. We're crouched in the bushes beside Gotham Central, looking totally inconspicuous. The doors are locked and no ones there to let us in. I tried to persuade the others to let me just go up and pick the lock, but Kaldur started lecturing me on the values of patience and I let the subject drop. I have plenty of patience (heck, sitting still for hours in a small space was part of Batman's training), but we had a time limit here. Luckily, someone finally walked up.

"Wally, go," Kaldur hisses.

Wally speeds across the lawn, catching the door right before it closes. The rest of us follow a little slower and slip inside.

"Room G24," Roy says, like we didn't know.

"This way," I say, remembering the blueprints of the building I memorized before coming here.

While walking, we encounter a few students and two teachers. But no one really pays us any mind. We do duck away from one strict looking guy with one of those lanyards with a whistle attached, but that's just common sense.

We pause outside G24. There's a curtain covering the window on the door. But lucky for us, Kara can see through fabrics and she confirms that there are three people inside the room.

"Can you hear what they're saying?" I ask.

Kara scrunches up her face. "A little. They're talking pretty low and not very clearly at all. Why do people mumble so much?"

I try to hide my impatience. "And they're saying...?"

"Oh, yeah, sorry. Um, they're talking about someone who was suppose to show up...and he's not there. And someone just said they'll have to call the meeting if he doesn't show up in the next five minutes."

"We better move then," Wally says and reaches for the door handle. He's not the kind to sit around. He opens the door and pushes his way in.

I don't know what I was really expecting. But I wasn't expecting this. It looks like three kids, just chilling out. One guy and two girls. All probably a year or so older than me. One girl with long, dirty blonde hair is tapping away on her phone. The other two look like they could be related, both with wide faces and darkish hair and skin. They almost have a Native American look to them. The boy has pushed two desks together and is lying on top of them like a bed and the girl is braiding her hair.

The three look up as we enter.

"Sorry to intrude," Kaldur says, elbowing Wally hard in the ribs. "Is this the eYawn club?"

"Yeah..." The boy's eyes flicker around at us. "And we're closed to new members."

"Hi, I'm Kara," Kara says suddenly. "And couldn't you just think about accepting me and my friends here? We really, really, really want to join." She doing her cheerleader voice again and she's batting her eyes flirtatiously.

"Uh, no," the blonde girl says. She has sharp, defined features, almost like a cat. Her eyes are a bright green."Can't you hear? We're not open to the public."

"Sorry," the other girl adds softly. Her eyes are on the ground, like she thinks we might disappear if she can't see us.

"But we really believe in what the eYawners stand for," Kaldur says. He says it so weird and straight faced though, no way they'll take him seriously. He sounds like he just asked to join a funeral procession.

I tune out their useless banter and study the room. It's a pretty standard classroom layout. Teacher's desk in the front corner, students desks all around with a utility closet on the side wall and a chalkboard in the front. But then my training kicks it and I start to pick up details. There's a layer of dust on the teacher's desk which gives proof that this classroom isn't used for school. I glance down at the carpet. It's different than the rest of the school's, almost newer. Lifting my foot up slightly, I hear an almost silent click. The floor is pressurized. Three people really are allowed only then, it seems. But us entering should have triggered the pressure pads. I look around and sure enough, several bug-sized cameras are positioned around the room at every discernible angle. There's an almost invisible line in the wall around them, proving that they most likely flip out when the motion sensors on the doorframe (which I now see were disguised as hinges) and the pressure pads are triggered. Indubitably, there are some weapons pointed at us somewhere. Most likely from the teacher's desk's sides and hidden behind the curtains on the window.

I turn to look at the small camera positioned right over where we came in. Without even trying, I know it's out of my reach. "Hey, um, Kal. Could you get that for me?"

Kaldur turns around but Roy speaks before he can help me. "Drop it, Dick. You led us to the wrong place."

I raise an eyebrow. "I don't think so. If you could?"

Kaldur stretches up and pulls the camera off the wall. Immediately, it starts to flash red and make a high-pitched keening. Kaldur stares at it in horror and then at me. "Why did you have me do that!"

I just hold out my hand for it and Kaldur practically throws it to me.

The boy has gotten off the desks now. "Hey, I would put that down if I were you. It's set to be a bomb—"

"Quick, everyone behind me," Kara says hurriedly. It's like the word bomb is her activation word to go from pretty cheerleader to indestructible superhero.

"No need," I say. I hold the button-like object at arms length away so that the camera is pointed at me. "Robin authorization number 64830027."

A beam of light shoots out from the camera and scans me up and down. "Authorized," a voice says and the camera immediately stops its squealing and flashing.

All around us, the room goes back to looking nondescript. The cameras swivel back into the walls so that they're hidden from sight, there's a finalizing click from the pressure sensors, locking them into place, and a whirring sound from the teacher's desk and from behind the curtains tells me we no longer have weapons aimed at us.

"How did you..." The guy stares at us in amazement. Then he turns his gaze to settle on me. His eyes are startling pale blue. "Wait a minute, I know you. You're Dick Grayson, that genius kid who beat us practically singlehandedly in the scholastic decathlon two years ago."

"I remember," the cat-like girl says, "you were the only, like, eight-year-old on the team."

I start to turn red. "I was eleven actually." Honestly, I don't look that young, do I?

"Whatever. Still, you're an Academy rich kid. What are you doing at Central?"

"More importantly," the cat girl interrupted, "how did you know how to deactivate the bombs?"

"Trade secret," I say. We'd better play it safe with these kids. We don't know much about them and already they can assume too much about us.

"Are you like us?" The other girl looks up for the first time. She has pale blue eyes, just like the boy.

"Like...you?" Kara asks.

"Yeah. I'm Raina, this is Hunter and Cat." Her eyes flicker around the group. It gives me the willies when they settle on me. "You were trained like we were, except at the Academy."

Kaldur frowns. "Trained? Trained by whom?"

"Batman," I mutter.

The boy, Hunter, nods, confirming. "Yeah, Batman set up this club for us because of what we can do."

Of course, now it makes sense. It seems my earlier suspicions that Batman knew what was coming were correct. He planned for me to find these kids, sensing we would need a bigger team if we were to face whoever captured them.

"You guys have powers, too?" Wally says slowly, "I mean, super super powers?"

Cat nods. "Yup. So you guys have them too?"

"Yes," Kaldur says. "Some of us do. Other are specialities."

"That's...nice," Hunter says.

I frown at that. Batman warned me that I could get into more trouble than others not having powers and all. It's keeping up the illusion of being more than you appear that gives you the real power. I can't remember how many times as a kid I would think Batman could secretly read minds when in reality he was just really good at noticing clues.

I study the three before me. "So what? You guys have some type of metal powers, right?" I nod to Hunter and Raina. Mental abilities are usually associated with strange features (like the eyes). But they would have used their powers, as soon as we started acting up and I activated the bomb. They must be limited by their senses somehow. Touch is the most common. Boys tend to get more physical powers and girls tend to get the whole mind control/reading bits. I take a guess, "So what, Hunter's got the ability to teleport what he touches and Raina can read the minds of those she touches? And what are you guys, siblings?"

Hunter stares at me. "No, we're cousins. But the rest is correct. How'd you do that?"

"Oh, my turn," Cat says. She steps in front of me eagerly. She's pretty and I automatically fall into my usual pattern I take when talking to girls.

"You, obviously, have feline powers. Probably not full transformative abilities but still great, and probably only come around with anger of other high emotions. Other than that though, you most likely have heightened senses and quick reflexes. I wouldn't be surprised if you could climb well either. You seem to be a girl of many talents." I give her my best smile and she blushes.

Kara elbows me hard. "Ease up there, Grayson."

"That's incredible," Hunter says. "What's your power? Can you see into the future or read minds or something?"

"Something like that," I say, leaving it open to interpretation.

"Right, so you guys know Dick, the incredible showoff. I'm Kara, and this is Wally, Kaldur, and Roy."

"Nice to meet you," Raina says.

"So..." Kaldur says, trying to be casual and failing, "can you tell us a little about your training Batman does with you?"

"Huh? Oh yeah, sure. Batman's conditioning us to become sidekicks."

"We haven't actually gone out an saved anyone yet," Raina adds to her cousin's remark, "but we've really been working on getting a reign on our powers. You guys having the same trouble?"

"Yeah, it was really tough the first few years," Wally says, without thinking.

"Years?" Cat looks impressed. "Wow. We've only been at this for a few months. Batman would drop in after school and help us out. All very top secret, of course.

"He's a great teacher," Hunter says eagerly.

"Ignore him," Cat says teasingly. "He just hopes Batman will choose him as a sidekick when all our training is done."

"Since, you know, he doesn't have one yet. He's one of the few members on the Justice League that doesn't." Hunter clasps his hands. "Oh man, it would be so cool. He's already hinted at it too."

I feel myself go numb. I pointedly look away and hope that for the sake of our identities, the others aren't stupid enough to look at me. But I tell myself it can't be true. Batman would never replace me. Unless, I think, that he's ashamed of me. Is that why he never let me go into public with him?Why we only did shady back alley jobs to stop criminals, and he made sure I was always out of the limelight? Because he was actually training another kid to replace me?

I crush that thought from my mind. Thinking like that will only distract me.

"What about you?" Cat asks. "What was your training like?"

"Similar," I say. "Sidekick conditioning and whatnot."

"What about your powers?" Raina asks, then blushes when we look at her. "Sorry, but it's just hard to believe that there are others out there, you know?"

"Oh yeah, I know what you mean." Kara glances at me. She seems to have caught on to what I'm doing. "My power is to fly. Well, hover really."

"I can control water," Kaldur says.

"I like to think I'm pretty fast." Wally winks at Cat.

"Long-distance weapons specialist," Roy grunts.

They don't ask for my power which is fine by me. Assumptions are better made by the enemy. That's Rule 665. Right after "never make assumptions". Of course, these kids aren't necessarily enemies. But I'm not really the sharing type as it is. No matter what situation you're in, it always helps to have secrets (798).

"So where is Batman? And why did you guys show up? Did something happen?" Hunter asks, sounding worried.

Kaldur looks at me and clears his throat. "We don't really know."

"Darn right we don't. We were actually hoping you guys might though," Wally says.

Raina shakes her head. "We haven't seen Batman since our last club meeting which was several months ago."

I resist screaming in frustration. This is getting us nowhere. I start pacing the room in a huff. Moving always helps me clear my mind. None of the others pay me any mind. Already they're discussing what limited things they do know. This is ridiculous. It's nice that Batman wants us to have a bigger group but don't tell me he didn't leave a single clue as to what our next step is. I'm practically thirsting for guidance. I can't do this. I can't do this. I can't...

I pause. What's weird about this room? Cameras at every angle yet not a single one connects to the mainframe at the Bat-cave. That means there must be a room here somewhere. A place where Batman could duck into if he didn't want to be seen. After all, this is a pretty public place. His hiding spot would have to be close at hand...

"Has Batman ever been in here and then had to hide?" I ask loudly, interrupting whatever Roy was saying. Probably a complaint.

"No," Cat says. Frowning, she looks at the others for confirmation. "He always times it just right so that nobody is near when we're doing training."

The cousins nod. "Yeah."

"Hmmm..." That means I'll have to figure it out on my own. Batman would still have the room, even if he never used it. He's a big fan of foolproof backup plans.

I run my hands along the wall, feeling for any catches in the plaster. Anything that might signal a trapdoor or a secret latch.

Everyone's watching me now, not sure what I'm doing but not daring to interrupt.

The utility closet seems almost too simple a hiding place but I try there anyways. I jiggle the doorknob and it doesn't open.

"The door's always locked," Hunter says helpfully. As if I couldn't figure that out myself.

No problem. There are several things I never leave home without, even when wearing civilian clothes. Hidden in a sewed on pocket in the collar of my shirt is a set of lock picks. I also have a back up pair in my right shoe, my pant leg, and my sleeve. You never know sometimes. I rolled up my tech gloves and put them in my pockets before leaving the house. I also am carrying around a few smoke grenades, some throwing stars, my collapsible staff, a flash bomb, and an emergency cable line. But I can't exactly tell you where I'm keeping those. Trade secret.

With my picks, I open the door easily. Supply closet locks aren't made with the idea of keeping out a lock-picking robber. I put them back in my collar before opening the door.

Just as I thought. Normal. Shelves of textbooks and arts and crafts supplies. But still...maybe Batman chose this place because he knew people would think it's too obvious. They'd give it a quick glance and then dismiss it upon seeing their suspicions confirmed. Luckily, I've been trained never to give anything a "quick glance".

Batman loves to make entrances unnecessarily difficult to enter. One way into the Bat-cave from the Manor involves going up to the library and playing some choice notes on the grand piano.

"Hey, do you guys happen to know what this classroom is used for?"

Raina answers, "Um, Batman had this room especially built around the time Bruce Wayne was remodeling the school. Apparently, the two know each other."

I honestly have to restrain myself to keep from banging my head against the wall. Seriously? How stupid can a person be?

Hunter pokes his head around. "This room in in the social sciences department so probably for that, right?"

Finally, someone who can make a reasonable inference. If only he hadn't said that little thing about being Batman's sidekick earlier, I would almost say he's a cool guy.

"Perfect," I mutter. Then I say in a louder voice, "You guys can stop ogling and come over and help."

"Um, we don't know what exactly you're doing, Dick," Kaldur says, coming to join me.

"I need to find a musical instrument." I go through some boxes filled with yarn.

"Sure you do," Wally says. But he helps me look.

Roy groans. "When did we stop questioning the stupid things he has us do?"

"When they actually started getting us somewhere." Kara brushes past him. "Come on."

"I can just summon an instrument," Hunter says, leaning against the doorframe, watching us. "I've touched plenty in the music room."

"No, it needs to be specific." I take down a large box labeled "puppets".

Eventually, Wally finds it. He was zipping through faster than any of us, after all. "Here, is this what we're looking for?"

"Yes!" I take the flute from him. I then frown at the sparkles all over my hands.

"It was with the glitter," Wally says, showing me his hands which are also bedazzled.

I sigh. Glitter. The worst camouflage ever. Not to mention it sticks to everything. I look at the others. "I would step out of the way if I were you."

They do obediently.

I bring the flute to my lips and play three distinct notes. The last note sounds off and makes the others wince when I hit it. But it gets the job done.

The rack holding the textbooks creaks and rotates inward. I step forward through the narrow opening. Everyone else follows skittishly behind me.

"Ha, I knew Batman had a place like this," Hunter says happily. I can barely hide my annoyance. If he really did know, why didn't he say anything?

The room is small, just a little bigger than the supply closet we just left. The chalkboard on the other side seems to be a one way mirror and we can see through into the room beyond. Screens line the walls, showing images of the school, the classroom, and even, to my surprise, of Gotham Academy. I recognize all my classes on the screens. I'm not really sure how I feel knowing that while Batman was training three new sidekicks unbeknownst to me, he was spying on my every move.

"What now?" Cat whispers.

I'm standing right in front of the monitors showing my school. Batman would have known I would be drawn to those first. Sure enough, I glance down and there's a sticky note on a button.

Push and speak.

I'm getting frustrated. Why can't he just be straightforward about things? Then I think...maybe he knew he wasn't safe. Maybe he was the one being watched. He knew everything he told me would put me in danger, so I would have to figure the mystery out on my own. That thought almost makes up for him spying on me. Almost.

I clear my throat for silence from the others who have been voicing their own opinions for the last minute.

I press the button. "Robin laid an egg." It's the code word for me being in trouble. Batman's is "the bat has flown the belfry" which in my opinion is a lot cooler and not as stupid as laying an egg. But I guess I sort of set myself up for that one, being a bird and all.

All around me, the screens start to flicker on and off different colors, and a seriously bad humming sound starts up.

"Dick, I swear...you better not have set off another bomb," Roy says going pale.

"Please tell me you did not," Kaldur pleads.

"I don't...think so..." I look around at the screens. Blue red orange red green purple blue red yellow green purple purple orange. Then it repeats. There's a pause sometimes between the colors too. Some flicker on fast than others. Weird. My eyes flicker around, searching for patterns.

The humming has now increased to a near deafening pitch.

"Um, guys, I think we should go," Raina says meekly.

My head swivels back and forth. I think I'm saying the pattern out loud but I can't really tell. I can barely hear anything as it is. "Blue red orange red green purple blue..."

The room has heated up considerably now.

"We have to go!" Kaldur shouts over the humming.

I am only vaguely aware of the movement around me. The pattern is all I can concentrate on. It'll lead me to Batman, to Alfred, to the only family I have left...

"Robin!"

Kara grabs me and easily lifts me, flying both of us out of the room. I snap out of it.

"Put me down!"

"The room is going to explode and take the whole school with it!"

"No...it...won't!" I use a jiujitsu move to scramble out of her grasp. I roll and pop up, slamming my shoulder into the shelf that acts as the door. I lock knees and am able to just get it to close. There's a click.

Then a boom shakes the building. I fall over and my forehead smacks into a textbook, leaving me dazed.

Wally speeds inside. "Are you guys okay?"

Kara flies down. "Yeah. But Bird Boy almost got himself killed."

"The door...it's boom resistant," I say. Blood trickles down my brow and I wipe it before it can get into my eyes. "If I hadn't closed it, it would have blown up the entire school."

Roy comes in. "Kaldur is trying to calm down the newbies outside. Apparently, they don't live through explosions everyday. So what's the deal," he says to me, "is the Bat trying to off yah?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you lead us through a series of clues that only you would ever be able to figure out," Roy sits down on a desk. "And the end result is an explosion that could have killed us all."

"No, Batman wasn't trying to kill me," I say. "Once the sequence had been activated, it's standard procedure to get rid of the evidence."

"Sure. Maybe he was trying to off you to replace you with one of the new additions outside having a panic attack," Roy crosses his arms and shrugs.

"Pretty elaborate plan, don't you think?" I glare at Roy. "I saw him just this morning, after all, and he could have killed me then."

"Both of you, cut it out," Kara says. Then she turns to Wally. "Can you go open up the nearest League safe-house? I hear sirens. We'll meet you there."

Wally nods quickly and is gone in a blur.

"Now, Dick," she turns back to me. "Why don't you work on solving that pattern of yours?"

I blink at her. "Right. Blue red orange—"

"No! I don't really want to hear it anymore. It's already burned into my retinas." Kara swoops out of the room.

Roy and I look at each other, neither wanting to be left alone with the other, and we both make our way outside.

"But it was going to explode!" Cat says in a loud voice. "Why didn't it explode?"

"I don't know—Kara! Dick! You guys alright?"

"Fine, Kaldur." Kara flies over. "Dick closed the door so the explosion was insulated."

"Good. Status report?" He looks to me.

I wave him off, colors and patterns flashing through my mind.

"Oh...did he memorize the patterns? Tell me them, maybe I can help! I'm practically a sidekick to the world's greatest detective, after all." Hunter comes up to me eagerly.

Something inside me snaps. Maybe it was a combination of Roy's earlier comments and the fact that this Hunter kid is really grating on my last nerve. Whatever the reason, I break Rule 478: Never let the enemy know they got to you.

I round on Hunter and get up in his face. He's taller than me (who isn't?) but he still takes a step back. "Look," I growl, "I've had a long and somewhat traumatizing day. Batman doesn't need a sidekick. He's got me. And even if he did, he wouldn't choose a panicky, eager little puppy like you." My voice grows so cold and emotionless that it almost freaks me out. "So either give me some space to do what I've been trained to do for five years or come closer so I can rip that stupid smile off your face and shove it so far down your throat that you'll be grinning through a different pair of cheeks."

Hunter stares at me with a horrified expression on his face. I know what he's thinking. That sounded like a threat. And superheroes don't make threats. Super villains do.

Kaldur steps in between us. "Dick, pull yourself together."

I stumble back, shocked with myself. I guess after all these years of working with Batman—of working with professionals—the whining and shouting of the newbies drives me up the wall. I had wondered when I finally had friends that understood me, which side of me they would see: the pompous rich kid or the super know-it-all? I'm dismayed to find out that the real me seems to be a combination of the two.

"I'm...sorry," I manage, running a hand through my hair. There's a lot of dried blood from my head wound.

"I don't get it," Raina says. Before, she was on the ground, rocking back and forth, but now she seems to have recovered. "You guys say you were trained the same as us. Yet, you all reacted like professionals to a bomb situation. And Dick just said that Batman doesn't need a sidekick because he has him." She rubs her temples and glares at us. "Someone better explain before I have to get the answer by other means."

The four of us exchanged looks. I look away shamefaced. I put us in this position.

Kara clears her throat. "I don't know if there's a delicate way to do this...but—"

And suddenly, all our League alerts go off at once.

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Phew. Told you it was long. But it was pretty fantastic. Sorry about the cliffhanger, but you'll just have to deal. :)

Thanks for all the followers and favs. More reviews are greatly appreciated.

youwishyouwerethiscool


	8. Chapter 8

A nice long chapter to ease your suffering. Just to clarify, Hunter, Raina, and the new guy we meet are my own OCs.

Thanks to everyone who reviews! They make me happy! Especially those who have clear Robin references in their names. You guys rock! Robin is live.

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8

You can almost see it come over us, like a spell. Hope; hopelessness. Professionalism mixed with childishness. Each of us wanting the person on the other end of the call to be our mentor, perfectly fine, and yelling at us, asking why we missed training, where we are, why we blew our cover...while at the same time letting our sidekick manner, full of League and personal codes, wash over us. It's like putting on a different face.

Kaldur, Kara, and Roy take out their League badges. They're palm-sized, round and smooth, like a rock a child would pick it to skip across a pond. But it glimmers with a sort of inner light and is actually an extremely advanced piece of alien tech.

I take out my gloves from my pocket and pull them on. The holo-screen pops up. I frown. It's asking for verification. The only way it would do that is if there was a mole on the inside. That thought brings me crashing down to earth. Batman is not calling me. He is not okay. I still don't know where he is.

Kara glances at Hunter, Cat, and Raina. She was right in saying there's no delicate way in doing this. In fact, this was probably the least delicate way possible. She clears her throat. "Supergirl, M2."

"Aqualad, A2."

"Speedy, S2."

"Robin, G2."

The message opens up and an image appears on my screen while at the same time, a holo-image of a girl comes out of their badges.

"This line is secure. I am Zatanna Zataya, and we have a Code Red." She's the magician girl I caught laughing at me just this morning. Now she looks pretty beat up. "I...I don't know who to trust. They're all gone, all the others."

"Zatanna, calm down," Kara commands. She glances at us. "What happened?"

I already know what she's going to say. "The villains...regular crooks and robbers that we've been stopping for years without problems...they suddenly will turn on you, and their victims did too. And they're assassins. They grabbed Guardian and all the others. I was able to teleport myself out of there..." She bursts into tears.

"Zatanna, it's okay. We'll try to send you some coordinates for the League safe-house. Um..." Kaldur frowns at his communicator.

I roll my eyes. "I've got it." I press a few buttons on my holo-screen and Zatanna looks down.

"Okay, I just got them. I'll...I hope I see you guys soon."

"Kid Flash is already there," Kara reassures and hangs up.

Roy glances at me suspiciously. "How did you know which safe house we were talking about?"

I shrug as I put away my gloves. "Your communicators emit a high frequency radio wave. It's pretty easy to track if you know how. I just followed Kid Flash's."

Kara frowns. "Do the...bad guys know how?"

My eyes widen like this only just occurred to me. "They might." Everything I just said is true. But not entirely. I can track the communicators but I didn't know that until they were all turned on around me just now. But I'm not about to tell them that the real reason I could find Kid Flash is because I put my own personal trackers on all of them. Even though it is a safety procedure for if one of us were to be captured, they might take it the wrong way.

Roy looks guiltily down at his shiny League symbol. "So I guess we should drop them."

I sigh. "That is highly advanced alien technology in your hand. Not a rock. You can't just 'drop them'." I hold out my hand for it. Roy (probably against his better judgement) hands me it. I run my figures over its smooth sides, marveling at the processor this thing must be holding. I flip it around and make a gesture with my hand. A keyboard pops up in German. After a few minutes of typing, I throw the communicator into the air. It hovers there for a second, then flies away.

Roy watches it go. "Where's it going?"

"Back to the Hall of Justice to a secure location," I say.

"How did you know how to work that?" Kaldur asks as I take his.

I reprogram his and watch it fly away before answering. "All League members have the same badge, that's how they keep track of everyone. Once, Batman left his lying around and I tinkered with it for a few hours."

Kara hands her's to me. "Robin, you really are a man of many talents. And you speak German too?"

I glance at her but quickly look away. I can't tell if she was being sarcastic or not. "I only can read it. I can't do the accent without seeing it—"

"Hold up!" Cat throws her hands into the air. "You guys are real, actual sidekicks?"

Raina is chewing on her fingers and her cousin has a hand clapped over his mouth like he can't believe it.

Hunter points at each of us. "I've seen you guys on TV! I can't believe I didn't see it earlier. Oh wow...except you...Robin?" He says my name and I get the feeling the hostility from my earlier threats hasn't warn off. "From the way you've been talking, I'm sensing you're saying you're Batman's sidekick."

I stand up a little straighter. "Yeah. I am."

Hunter shakes his head and looks like he's stifling a laugh. "But you're younger than any of us! I mean, Batman's so awesome and you...you're the geeky rich kid on the Academy's trivia squad!"

I feel my face burn. My mind is flickering from the code to my training. Rule 478...I can flip him right now...Rule 478...he's got his arm out and everything...Rule 478...go for the elbow and then break the wrist and turn the shoulder to pop it out of its socket...

Kaldur steps between us. "Robin—I mean Dick—is one of us. And he has already demonstrated multiple abilities that make him invaluable as a team member. However we have yet to see anything that you have to offer." Kaldur towers over Hunter. "Remember that."

Then he turns and stalks off.

I almost laugh at the look on Hunters face. Then I trot off after Kaldur.

What should I do? When Batman saves my skin or I save his in a situation, we don't say anything. We know that the other is grateful and that's that. But I feel like I should say something now. "Um, hey, Kaldur...thanks."

Kaldur turns on me, his face set. "We cannot have childish squabbles when lives are at stake. I know you are young but try to keep it professional." Then he turns as starts talking with Speedy.

Ouch, that stung. Kaldur thought that not only did he have to intercede, but that I'm too young to handle the situation maturely. Feeling humbled, I follow a little farther behind the others. Hunter, Cat, and Raina are chattering excitedly with Kara and I let their voices wash over me. It's easy conversation and Kara isn't giving them exact answers, but it's still friendly.

"Where do you live? Do you always wear your costume like under you clothes and stuff?"

"Is It a pain to go to the bathroom in?"

"Um, sometimes. But I don't usually—"

"How old were you when you started? How did Superman find you?"

"Actually I—"

"Is he as handsome in person as on TV?"

"Uh..." Kara glances at me, looking uncomfortable. That's a little surprising to me. After all, her mentor doesn't mind attention. And with her cheery clothes and gung-ho attitude towards everything, I didn't take her as a shy girl.

I sense something out of the corner of my eye suddenly. We're off school grounds now, walking down the street between a series of small window shops. My training kicks in and I don't turn around or pause. I continue like there's nothing wrong.

I stop when I come to a window that could be reasonably interesting. We're all dressed like normal kids, so we might as well act like it. It's a model train shop win a small steam-powered train traveling in circles in the window. Okay, so maybe only interesting to forty-year-old guys living in their basement, but I can make it work. "Hey guys," I call to the others.

Hearing the enthusiasm in my voice, they all immediately turn around. "What's up, Dick," Kara asks. "Something wrong?"

I smile widely. "Nah, but you've got to see this train." I tap the glass with my knuckle.

"You serious? We don't have time for this!" Roy says, giving me a look.

"No, I'm serious. This is a 1846 Bentley. Look, it's in perfect condition and everything." I trace my finger on the glass.

Kaldur seems to sense something's up because he walks up beside me. The others follow, somewhat hesitantly. At least Kaldur has some common sense.

"You know, the first steam engine was originally created two hundred years ago for pumping water out of mines, and then the first locomotive was invented, called the Rocket, by George Stephenson..." I start rattling off train facts like I'm a real enthusiast. But all the while, I'm actually staring at the reflection in the glass of across the street. Just as I suspected.

"There's a man following us," I add. "But don't look."

Nobody does. Hunter almost, but Roy throws an arm around his shoulder, forcing him to keep looking ahead.

"How do you know?" Kaldur asks me, a smile on his face like we're still talking about trains.

I gesture at the train. "Bright red baseball cap. He's been behind us on the opposite side of the road since we left Central. He's stopped right now since we did and is having a conversation with the florist across the street to make it seem casual." I study his reflection. "Late forties, African American, two concealed weapons: a gun in the holder under his jacket and there's a knife up his sleeve. His shoes are practical—made for running. He's not from around here either." This is a little more of an assumption than anything. It's just the people of Gotham don't wear bright colors. This man's red hat makes him stick out like a sore thumb.

It's started to drizzle again. The rain splashes against the puddles already formed in the road.

There are some observations that I don't tell the team. First of all, the guy is well trained. His movements and his easy-going, confident attitude all speak of at least twenty years of disciplinary training of some type. I'm guessing mixed martial arts, but that's only a hunch. There's something else about his manner that's confusing me too. He seems good at what he does. So why is it that he hasn't figured out that we know he's stalking us yet?

"What do we do?" Kara doesn't seem to be able to keep up the blasé front we had going.

"I don't have any weapons," Roy says, sounding nervous.

I give him a look so intense, he takes a step back. "Seriously? No weapons? You are aware that you don't have superpowers, right?" He took all that time figuring out his tough guy biker look and he didn't even slip a switch blade into his pocket?

Roy recovers himself and glares back. "Sorry, but I'm in civilian mode."

"Right. So am I. But I, at least, am armed." I turn away from him. I can feel the other's eyes on me, trying to figure out where I'm keeping my weapons. But I don't have time for this. "Follow my lead." I start to walk again, abruptly.

Hunter starts to babble. "Guys, what's that guy going to do to us? What's going on?"

"Hunter, shut up and maybe they'll tell us when we're not being stalked," Cat shoots at him. She casually looks back. "He's following us again."

I take the group into a side alley. The rain's coming down harder now. Kaldur holds up his hand, eyes starting to glow faintly, and directs it so it flows around us, like a big invisible umbrella.

I shouldn't have parked the SUV so far away. But I didn't want to draw attention to a thirteen-year-old kid driving. Plus, finding a parking space downtown is nearly impossible.

"Uh, Robin," Kara says, using my sidekick name to tell everyone to be on high alert, "I can't hear him any more."

Hunter turns around before anyone can stop him. "He's gone!"

Cat grabs his arm and wheels him back around. Then she pauses. "His smell is gone. The rain's washing it away."

"Supergirl, keep listening. Speedy, try to contact Kid Flash." Kaldur raises his arms and starts to gather the rain into a ball of water. His eyes glow bright blue as he does so, probably giving away who we are if the guy had any reason to doubt.

My fingers twitch towards my hidden collapsible staff. It's made of a titanium alloy, like my gloves, and is basically indestructible. Speaking of which, I should probably put my gloves on...

We don't stop moving as everyone's arming up. I let myself fall to the back of the group. Information is easier to gather from afar. I'll leave this to the super powered people.

I sink into the shadows. Years of practice is the only thing that really keep me from being seen with my civilian clothes on. I really wish I had my black cape right about now.

The man is leaning up against the SUV when we turn the corner. Everyone jumps and Raina lets out a little shriek. But the guy hasn't drawn his gun or his knife. He's acting as casual as he was before. He better hope he doesn't scratch the Batman's car.

"Hello, kids," he says in a friendly southern drawl. "Sorry for scaring y'all, but I figured this is the best way to getcha attention." He takes off his cap and bows his head. "Name's Sharp. Like the cheese."

Kaldur is holding a huge ball of water out in front of him, looking like he's ready to go all super-soaker on the guy. "Why have you been following us?"

"Now wait just a second, boyo. I wanna hava civilized conversation, see? Which one of ya'll is the leader of this here group?"

I see them all glance at each other. With a slight nod from Roy and Kara, Kaldur says, "I guess I am."

That makes sense. After all, he is the de facto leader on the missions their supers give them. And the oldest.

"Well, okey-dokey then. Now son, are you going to throw that at me because I'm already gettin' one heck of a shower." Sharp holds his hands out and glances up at the rain, grinning.

"We do not negotiate with the likes of you. What do you want?" Kaldur says, venom in his voice.

Sharp eyes the group. "I see we've got the sidekicks that escaped here. The Kid and the magician child have already been rounded up..."

"Kid Flash and Zatanna? What did you do to them!" Kara takes a step forward but Kaldur holds up an arm, stopping her.

"Now hang on there, sweetheart, I didn't do nothing to you're friends." Sharp is still looking at each young member of the group. "I see you've got the little powered kids that have been monitored for months now. That's good..." Then his eyes widen, just for a moment before he recovers himself and his casual expression falls back into place. But his left hand, I notice, strays toward his right sleeve, where his knife is. "Um...where's you're little friend? Where's Batman's sidekick?"

Kaldur frowns and glances around, eyes dimming slightly. "He's not here?" I try not to get too rankled that he only just now noticed.

By this time, I've managed to skiff around the whole scene so I'm behind Sharp. I've measured up the situation enough to make myself feel more comfortable. Batman doesn't do banter with criminals. He just knocks them out. But it seems like I'm going to have to talk to the guy before he's going to reveal anything.

I step out of the shadows, two throwing stars hidden in the palm of my hand. "Looking for me?"

Sharp swings around quickly, his reflexes faster than I expected. But my instincts kick in and I throw a star before I can even register that the knife is now in his hand.

My aim is right on and the knife clatters to the ground.

Sharp throws his hands into the air for an instant surrender. I think that's a bit weird. After all, when most bad guys I face see that they outweigh me by two hundred pounds, they don't usually go down peacefully.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare yah," Sharp says. "I don't mean yah no harm."

"Drop the fake accent," I say, getting irritated. This guy isn't making any sense. Why would he draw a knife if he didn't mean any harm? Is he trying to bluff his way out of this? I didn't take him to be that stupid.

Sharp cracks a smile. He speaks and this time there's no hint of a southern tone in his voice. In fact, he sounds like he's actually from the north, perhaps New York or New Jersey. "How did you know it was fake?"

"Lucky guess," I say. I don't reveal my tricks to the bad guys. Batman always says that's a fatal downfall of lots of heroes: haha, villain, you cannot beat me because I've got super strength and can shoot laser from my eyes! Now you can totally not use that information to build a trap that I can't break out of!

Sharp still has his hands in the air. "I thought that accent was quite good. One of my best. Oh well, it was starting to get on my nerves anyways."

Mine too. "So if you mean no harm, why are you stalking us down dark alleys and threatening us with knives?"

"You children went down the dark alley. And as for the knife, you just startled me. Leaping out of the shadows like that."

I frown. I had walked calmly out of the shadows. No leaping involved. "What happened to Kid Flash and Zatanna?"

"They were probably captured by now. The young Zatanna wouldn't have gotten very far outside of League headquarters. Especially in her current state. Wally West, or Kid Flash, doubtfully made it to the safe-house you all were heading to."

"No, he was there," I say. My tracker told me he was there.

"Really? Then I stand corrected. But do you know if he's still there?"

I pull up my holo-screen, searching for Wally's glowing blue dot. It's gone, though. That either means that Wally's now out of my range, or the tracker was destroyed. I play back the instant feed to see what happened. It shows the blue dot speeding over to the safe-house, waiting there for some time, then leaving, heading towards a civilian subdivision. I swear in Romani under my breath. "He went home." Probably to check on his family. Then his dot just disappears.

"And they grabbed him at his house. Probably took his whole family," Sharp says.

This time it's Roy who lunges for him. "Who are they? And are you not one of them?"

Sharp grins toothily. "No, sir. I'm just trying to look out for you kids."

"We don't need babysitters," I say venomously. Batman always treated me like a partner, not a sidekick. I'm used to having responsibilities. Alfred says I have a problem with authoritative figures, but I don't think so. They just always seem to have a problem with me.

"I'm sure you don't," Sharp says, completely at ease. "But you might need the information I hold."

"You know, usually the bad guys don't just hand over information without expecting something in return," Kara says.

Sharp nods thoughtfully. "True. But I'm not an ordinary bad guy. Just like you aren't ordinary kids." He cocks an eyebrow. "Isn't that right, Aqualad, Speedy, Supergirl..." His eyes flicker to me. "Robin."

I stiffen a little. Only the top villains of Gotham know who I'm am. Needless to say, I'm unused to getting recognized. My fingers play over the holo-keyboard. I need information.

"Then who are you?" Hunter speaks up. "Because I've never heard of you."

"His name is Sharp. He's from the Bronx. Forty-six years old, mixed martial arts expert. His special abilities have to do with his knife he always carries." I glance at the knife which is still on the ground from when I knocked it out of his hand. That explains why he went for the knife first and not the gun. I scroll down the screen. "Only known robbery is of a furniture store twenty years ago in Boston which was stopped mid-crime by the police. You disappeared off the radar and no other record of you exists."

"Which is highly unusual for Batman's records, am I right, Robin?" Sharp smiles at me. "No other files are more extensive than the Batman's. I'm guessing that I'm one of the few whose files are incomplete. Along with the Bat's and...yours?"

I grind my teeth together. He's absolutely right. Batman doesn't have actually any record of either me or him. It's like writing a journal full of weaknesses except a thousand times worse. But I want to know how he knows that. I hold up my throwing star so it catches the light. "You have three seconds before this goes between your eyes. How do you know that and why are you helping us? Or at least trying to?"

Sharp swallows. "I've been living in the underground for a while. I did not think that I would be able to live a normal life. After all, what sort of job would I have? My power just makes me handy with knives."

"Butcher? Baker? Candlestick maker?" Cat offers. Weirdo.

He ignores her. "So I stayed underground. I did some odd jobs, some henchman work. I never killed anyone, mind. Just moved boxes, did some heists. I never wanted to hurt anyone."

Roy snorts. "You're in the wrong business for that."

I say nothing. Batman once said to me, after my parents died, that revenge is not the answer. That there's a fine line separating us from them. Out of all the bad guys we've ever faced, Batman has only even shown a front of cool, collected calm. He never harmed anyone more than necessary. That's why we don't use guns. I've been trained to shoot, but I've only ever shot at birds and the occasional deer. Out of all my tools on my utility belt, none are extremely deadly. I guess I could just walk around and shoot all the bad guys, but that wouldn't accomplish anything. We disarm, arrest, and rehabilitate. That's our job.

"Anyways, a few months ago, they started recruiting assassins for some job. I didn't pay it any mind until practically every killer in the city was called up." Sharp shakes his head. "Eventually even I was contacted. They said they wanted people just to be captured. It's never that simple though." Sharp looks at us wistfully. "They were after you kids. The League sidekicks. But most especially..." He turns to me. "Him."

I swallow. "Me?"

"Why are they so interested in Robin?" Roy asks.

"Well, from what I overheard, they had this thing planned out for years. This whole heist of making the heroes disappear and grabbing the sidekicks."

Kara asks eagerly, "Do you know what happened to them?"

Sharp shakes his head. "No. I was just hired muscle. Anyways, so they had profiles on everybody. Each hero from all over America. Sidekicks too. Then one day, I'm helping to guard this one ammunitions plant and suddenly everyone starts going crazy. They're all yelling bloody murder at each other and I know for a fact that the higher ups dug out a ton of people and had them executed. It was all over Robin."

My hand is still frozen in the same position, prepared to through the star. But I lower it. "What do you mean? Why?"

"Because they didn't have a record on you," Sharp says, smiling now that he sees I'm not on the offensive. "You were a mystery. But some poor unlucky sole who was spying on Batman told their boss that there was a kid with the Bat. A kid who was flipping around like an acrobat. A kid who seemed a heck of a lot like a sidekick. But they didn't have any record of Batman having a sidekick at all."

I watch his eyes, trying to determine if he's lying. It must have been some henchman to spy on Batman and not get caught. Or on me, for that matter.

"The day for the operation to take place was happening and I realized that I didn't want anything to do with it. I mean, I may be a poor, unfortunate sole, caught in unwelcome circumstances...but kidnapping on a mass scale is just wrong." Sharp looks at each of us. "So I came, trying to outrun the others and get to the sidekicks before they did. And I found you." He looked down. "I'd imagine they've captured everyone else by now."

"How much do they know about us?" Kara asks in a quiet voice. "Our parents...?"

"Probably gone. They needed someone close to the hero to hold against them as leverage. Another reason why Robin was such a problem."

Because I don't have any living family members. I can feel the others looking at me.

"How can they know about us?" Raina asks. "We're not even sidekicks."

"No, but the moment they tracked them," he nods to the four of us, "to Gotham Central, they knew something was up. Which reminds me, you've all got trackers on you in your—"

"League communicators," I finish. "Yeah, we already ditched those."

Sharp looks impressed. "Very nice. That will throw them off your trail for some time. They used them to round up the others. In fact, they last transmitted that you were in Star City, and that's where I was headed before I some suspicious looking kids all around the age everyone is looking for wandering the streets of Gotham."

I don't think that's really fair. We weren't wandering, we were walking with purpose.

"So did you do that earlier stunt to throw them off you trail too?" Sharp asks me.

I cough. "What stunt?"

"Yeah..." Kara frowns at me. "What stunt?"

"It's all over the news. A sidekick was spotted in Star City in front of the Hall of Justice harassing some local teenagers. Somebody caught it all on their phone camera. Everyone thought it was somebody gone rogue. A few even thought he was Speedy in a different outfit."

I throw my hands up in defeat. "Why do people keep confusing me with him? We look nothing alike!"

"What did you do, Robin?" Kaldur asks, his voice full of authority.

I wave him off. "Some guy thought it would be funny to beat up a younger kid in front of all his buddies and I just didn't let him win." I leave out the fact that I was that younger kid.

"The kid apparently had a bloody nose and was in tears. His mom showed up on the seen and they got footage of him being yelled at for twenty minutes straight," Sharp says helpfully.

I wince. That's harsh. "Not my problem. Just doing me duty. Keeping the streets clean of filth."

Kaldur frowns disapprovingly. "We will talk about this later." The way he says it is like he's a parent who just got embarrassed in public by their kid. "Now, Sharp, what do you advise we do?"

"For now, I suggest we go someplace safe. The safe house that Kid Flash went to is no longer quite so secret."

"That's fine," Roy says. "There's another one not far from here."

"Hang on," I say. "This guy is still a criminal. Thanks for the information, but you should be on your way."

"No, I can still help! I think I know where they're keeping the heroes."

"Robin, come on." Kara looks as me pleadingly. "We could use his help."

"You're just nervous because we don't know anything about him," Roy says, rolling his eyes.

Once more, Roy has hit the nail on the head. But why does he think that's a good thing? "Exactly, I—"

"It has already been decided," Kaldur snaps. "Everyone, get in the car."

I repress my anger as we pile into the SUV. Roy's already in the driver's seat with Kaldur on the passenger's side. Sharp sits beside Kara (the Supergirl only having to lift a finger to kill him and that would deter anyone from running away). I get sandwiched in the back with the newbies who start chattering excitedly and annoyingly.

Roy starts up the engine. He glances down. "Oh. It's a stick shift." The car lurches a few times before finally pulling out of the alley.

I swallow my stomach. Of all the ways Kaldur could punish me. "He better not scratch it," I mumble and cross me arms as we turn down the main road.

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Ah, that was nice. I hope it sated your Robin appetite for the day ;). We've come across Sharp who I've hoped you realized is hiding more than he's admitting to...

What has happened to the Jusrice League? Can Sharp be trusted? And what is the meaning behind the message Batman gave Robin? Will Roy crash because he's never driven a manual transmission? Tune in next time...

*youwishyouwerethiscool


	9. Chapter 9

Thanks for feedback! Fabulous! Hears the next chapter! Deep stuff happens...yeah, I'll let you go ahead and read for yourself.

I do not own anything except this amazing plotline and those random people you don't recognize!

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9

I'm feeling incredibly tired by the time we reach the safe house. It's a ratty townhouse but I'm so exhausted and so sick of this car that it looks like the Palace of Versailles to me. Funny how Roy said the house was "not too far" away but we drove approximately three hours to get there. We stopped at other safe houses along the way, but Kaldur would glance at them and determine them not safe and we would drive on.

We're in a town not too far from Metropolis. It's one of those towns that might have been considered a big city back in, oh, I don't know, the colonial times. There's lots of parks and old signs that say Historic this and Preserved that.

We all blearily tumble out of the car. Only Kaldur is really alert. I should be too, but after all the excitement of today, I'm pooped. Kaldur leads Sharp first into the house before gesturing for us to follow.

Inside the house, I tiredly take in the room. It seems old and unused, with a faint smell of cigarette smoke still lingering in the shag carpet from the previous owner. The place is decorated with lots of black and white and mustard yellow—colors that were popular for decoration back in the early nineties. From what my blurry eyes take in, it seems the security system is the only thing updated about this townhouse.

"...and this isn't connected to the other safe houses?" Sharp is asking Kaldur .

"No. All the security systems and cameras run independently. They would have to break into League Headquarters in order to access them. No, I think we're safe." He turns to us. "Room situation. Robin, you're with me. Speedy and Hunter in the second room to the right. The three girls on the left."

As I watch them clamber upstairs, I feel a small sense of dread. It seems Kaldur still plans to chew me out. Or both Hunter and Speedy said they didn't want to room with me. Either way, I'm not fitting in with the team half as well as I had hoped.

"Sharp, sorry, but until we trust you more, I'm going to have to keep you in the cell in the basement."

"No problem, Aqualad," Sharp says, acting very benign, "I would do the same."

Lock us in the basement? Gee, how reassuring.

I watch Kaldur guide Sharp into the basement. I follow after a few minutes to see just how he's being locked up.

The whole basement is lined with cells like it was made specifically to be a penitentiary center. I stop at the doorway and watch as Kaldur puts Sharp in the first cell. There's a key to lock it hanging right next to the door. Kaldur locks the cell and slips the key into his pocket. "Good night."

"Night," Sharp grunts from inside the cell.

I wait until we're upstairs and Kaldur has locked the basement door with a second key before saying, "He's still got his gun you know."

Kaldur looks at me and I gather that no, he had forgotten about the gun. "It does not matter. He could have turned around and shot me at any time walking down those stairs. And now he is in a cell and I doubt a gun will help him get out."

He's probably right, but I say, "Still, it might have been better to make sure he doesn't have any weapons on him before letting him into the car, much less the safe house. And he could have been lying about his special abilities only relating to knives. Maybe—"

"Dick, don't be ridiculous. Did you sense he was lying?"

"Well—"

"Not everybody is lying all the time," Kaldur says. He places a gentle hand my shoulder, acting like an older brother. And I suppose he could be, being three years older. "Dick, you are still young. I know at times you forget the responsibilities weighing on you and you're probably worried about your family. And your mentor. We all are. But we need to be able to trust you in the field. That move you pulled on Hunter and the way you acted to those boys back in Star City, that was not acceptable."

I avoid his gaze. "That wasn't in the field though."

"Life is a continuous mission. You've got to be able to keep a professional manner when you're working with professionals. We've been doing this for a long time. I don't just judge someone by how they work in the field, but off it too."

This time I look him in the eyes. "I'm sorry. It's just...it's just I've never worked with kids my own age before. And Batman's so different..."

"Are you saying Batman would have tolerated that kind of behavior? Kaldur raises an eyebrow questioningly.

"Of course not." I look at my feet.

"How long have you been doing this, Dick?" Kaldur asks. "Because we all get to points where we get unstable and it always helps to have someone to talk to."

I open my mouth and then close it again. Then finally, I say, "Five years."

"See, not to mention you're approaching that age where—" He stops. "Did you say five years?"

"Yeah." I turn away from him and cross my arms.

"Wait, so how old were you when Batman first started to train you?"

Really? He still can't remember my age? Haven't we gone over this? "Right now I'm thirteen...so eight when I first started."

"I—I don't understand. How is it that you could be Batman's sidekick for so long and nobody know?"

I shrug. Batman doesn't go around just divulging information. "Batman's got ways of making sure people never find out certain things."

"Incredible. I've never heard of such a thing. How did you keep it from your family for so long?"

This I do not want to talk about. But when I don't say anything, Kaldur seems to suddenly know.

"It's okay, we all have issues with our families. Roy...Roy lives with his mother. His father died when he was little. Kara lives with her adoptive parents because her own parents died in the same incident that killed Superman's. My parents live back in Atlantis and I hardly get to see them. Wally, Hunter, Raina, and Cat...they all have normal families who were probably all captured. We know what you're going through."

"No, you don't." I steel myself and manage to say, "My whole family is dead." I turn to him. "Batman is the only family I have." My eyes are burning. I quickly look down and wipe away a stray tear. Stupid. Stupid for talking, stupid for crying...

Kaldur walks over and pulls me into a hug. I stiffen. I'm not used to such affection. The most Batman will ever do is pat me on the back. I push away. "I'm fine," I choke out.

Kaldur sighs. "Of course. You should probably get some rest. I'll take first watch."

I nod and quietly walk up the stairs. I take the first door on the right and collapse onto one of the beds. The room was set up like a boarding school and there're two bunk beds on either side. I don't have any pajamas to wear so I just slip off my shoes and roll over so I'm facing the wall. Hopefully, someone will wake me up when it's my turn to do watch. I have the feeling I won't be getting much sleep anyways. The conversation I just had swirls around my head. I can't believe I revealed so much about myself to anybody.

However, despite my previous thought, I am tired. Eventually, my eyes get too heavy to keep open and I fall into a troubled sleep.

I have a dream that night. Which was extremely odd. I don't usually dream, but this one I remember clearly. It was actually more like a nightmare.

I'm seeing myself while at the same time controlling myself. It's a weird sensation. My mother is there too. She has darker skin but the same light blue eyes as me. Her dark hair falls around her shoulders. She smiles at me. "In order to do trapeze, you must be supremely confident in your abilities. Can you do that for me, my dear?"

I nod. We are suddenly up in the air. The ground lit below us looks the size of a quarter. I'm standing at one of the raised platforms. My mother is beside me. I can see my father standing across on the other platform. He waves to us. At times I have trouble remembering what my father looked like. It's no different now, he's too far away and his features are blurred.

My mother, however, is crystal clear. I can even smell her rosemary perfume. "It only works without the net. You just cannot rely on some thing to catch you. With the danger, you can rely on only yourself. And your family." She smiles to where my father is. "I shall go first. Then you, my little Robin." She turns her back to the drop and extends her arms out to either side. She smiles at me, closes her eyes, and falls backwards.

At the same time, my father has jumped from his platform. He swings on a bar that is suddenly in his hands and flips to that he is gripping it with his legs. As he descends, he reaches out and catches my mother's extended arms and they both go swinging away from me.

Suddenly, I'm on the ground, looking up. This is where I was...I was standing here when it happened. I saw the ropes fray and the line snap and my parents tumble towards that ground. I heard the crowd gasp and then go silent and then scream. I cannot erase these images from my mind. I turn away and as I do, I see Bruce standing there just like he was before. I follow his gaze and see a large man paying off one if the tech crewman that is in charge of setting up the trapeze.

I turn back to Bruce. This is where he walks up and comforts me. This is where he grips my shoulder and leads me away. This is where I become his ward.

But instead, he's farther away. He's not looking at me, but at another boy. I see his face and it's Hunter. Suddenly, they're both in costume and Hunter is wearing my outfit and standing beside Batman.

And I'm nobody. I don't have anything left. And suddenly I'm hanging from the trapeze and I feel the rope snap and I tumble away and there is no net and—

"Robin!"

I jolt awake and smack my head on the bottom of the bed above me. Kara is standing over me, her forehead creased. "Are you okay?" she asks.

Yes, of course, smacking my head feels wonderful. "Yeah. Just a minor conclusion."

"No, I mean...you were calling out." Kara bites her lip.

"I was?" I look down at my hands which are still shaking. I take a few breathes. "Sorry. Bad dream."

"Wanna talk about it?" Kara asks.

Seriously? Why does everyone think I need a psychologist? "No."

"Well, um, it's ten o'clock. We finished breakfast and I thought I should wake you up. We're going to do some exercises."

Ten o'clock? I don't think I've ever slept in a day in my life. I swear in Romani and jump out of bed. I'm still in my wrinkled polo and khakis from yesterday. "No one woke me up for watch duty."

"Aqualad said you needed sleep." Kara's giving me a look I can't quite interpret. "Oh, and I brought you some clothes. The closets here are all fully stocked for emergencies and whatnot. So, yeah. Here." She hands me a bundle of clothes. They're mostly jeans and t-shirts.

"Thanks," I say. I really am grateful. Especially since I was apparently acting way out of line yesterday. "Seriously, Kara, thanks."

She smiles hesitantly. "No problem. Um, I was going through the zeta tubes in the closet and almost all of our uniforms can be teleported to here. But it asked for a password when I tried to find yours, so I thought you would handle that."

"'Kay."

"Um...yeah." Kara backs out of the room. "We're in the gymnasium when you're ready."

I wonder if they expect me to show up in full uniform or just in workout clothes. And what the heck is a zeta tube? I've never been to an official League workout session in my life, and I don't know what to expect.

I sort through the pile of clothes until I find a pair of shorts and a nice workout tee. After moving all my carried weapons to my new outfit, I check myself over in the mirror and run a hand through my hair. Great, now to the gymnasium.

I freeze at the door. Wait, this is a townhouse. Where do they keep a gymnasium?

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i feel like being nice and posting another chapter. XD. No need to thank me. But you could...Review!

~youwishyouwerethiscool


	10. Chapter 10

Prepare for a plot twist. After this, it gets so epic that you guys might wet youselves. Can't wait!

I don't own DC comics but maybe I should XD

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10

I eventually find the gymnasium by taking the elevator. Man, I wonder what rent costs for this place.

When the doors slide open, I take a look around. The gym is huge with archery ranges and a wrestling/combat mat. There's fencing equipment, long distance weapons, a pool that looks like it's closed down, some hoops hanging from the ceiling for the flyers, and a track circles the whole thing. There's even some gymnastics equipment. I wonder how they built this place without the neighbors right above us finding out. Also, how many floors does this place have? The elevator buttons designated at least four.

"Well, look who finally made it," Cat calls from across the room. She and the other newbies are stretching with everyone else. Great.

Kaldur and Kara make room in between them for me to join their circle which I'm thankful for. But now I'm standing right across from Hunter.

"So, we were saying," Roy says, not hiding the irritation from his voice, "that the newbies should get some official training under their belts. Especially since all they've ever worked on with the Batman is their power set."

Well, that sounds boring. I look around. "Where's Sharp?" After trusting him enough to invite him into the safe house, having him stay the night, and leaving him armed, I would have thought he would have been invited up here to watching us and learning our weaknesses.

"He's still in his cell, snoring like you were a few minutes ago," Kaldur says. "He didn't even wake up when I took his gun from him this morning."

I glance at Kaldur who meets my gaze and smiles back calmly. "Oh. Okay then. Um...so training?"

"We're going to do a few laps around the gym." Kara glances around at the equipment. "Then we'll do some target practice. And then we'll do some projections."

What, like banking projections? "Uh, okay."

Cat rolls her eyes. "Great. The first thing I need in the morning is a mile run."

We walk over to the track. "Just do what you can," Kaldur says.

The newbies keep groaning and complaining until Roy shouts for us to start.

Kara and Kaldur pull immediately ahead. But that's expected since both their powers make them stronger and faster.

Roy and I are neck and neck with Hunter right behind us. Cat's behind him, but I don't think she's trying very hard. Raina is already breathing heavily behind her.

After about thirty minutes I realize that Kara and Kaldur seem to be getting closer. After another ten minutes, I've passed them. Roy has dropped back too now. I do another lap and frown when I see that everyone else has stopped and are flopped on the floor, breathing heavily. I slow down and walk towards them. Wiping sweat from my forehead, I say, "Sorry, I didn't know when to stop."

Roy doesn't say anything but just glares at me, chest heaving. Cat, Raina, and Hunter have already gotten bottles of water for us all. They quit after the first five minutes. Kaldur looks at me in a new light as he stands with his hands on his hips trying to recover his breath.

"Impressive, Robin," he says. "Your endurance out-stood even those of Kara's."

Kara gives me a look. "Sure you don't have superpowers?"

I shake my head. They stopped because they were tired? I'm tired too, but I didn't stop. I thought we were going for an hour. Whatever. "So what's next?"

"Target practice." Roy rolls onto his feet and gets up, grinning. I guess he's happy we're finally doing something that doesn't make him look like a loser. Not that that stupid grin on his face is helping his cause.

We all go over to the target range. There's cardboard cutouts of gangsters with targets panted on them. Each are distanced at between ten to sixty yards away. A variety of long distance weapons are lined up on the rack next to us.

"The outer ring is ten points and if you hit the middle it's one hundred," Roy says. He sounds like a little kid explaining his favorite game. "The farther away, the more points you get." He picks up the bow and arrow. He tests the draw once before notching and aims at the farthest away target. He lets the string go and there's a swish and a thwack as the arrow flies through the air and hits the dead center of the target sixty yards away. Hunter and Cat clap at the display.

Roy takes a little bow. "Six hundred points goes to me."

"Why do we have to practice this?" Raina asks, looking at the weapons nervously. "I'll never be able to do that. Plus I have my own powers."

"You never know when your powers will fail you," Kara says. "Then you'll have to use whatever you have that's available. And that might be a knife the bad guy dropped—oh, or this weird gun thing..." She picks up a deadly looking laser gun and points it at the closest target. It makes a whirring noise as it charges up and fires with a bang. The cardboard gangster is reduced to smoldering ashes. "See?"

Raina now looks even more nervous than before. "Uh, okay."

"It's simple hand-eye coordination," Kaldur says gently. "You will get the hang of it." He moves off a little, showing the three newbies each weapon.

"Nothing to say, Bird Boy?" Roy asks, smirking at me. He seems to be more confident in annoying me now that Kaldur 's out of earshot.

I actually have a lot to say about his idiotic points game, but I don't want to get into a fight after I'm already in hot water. "No. Looks...fun."

"I saw what you did with those little frisbees. Care to demonstrate for us?" Roy does a mock show of tossing an invisible frisbee.

Kara rolls her eyes. "Roy, don't be a baby."

"It's called a shuriken," I say. I know I'm being baited, but I do not throw little frisbees.

Roy looks pleased that his prodding worked. "Oh, I'm sorry I don't know the technical term. But you do through them like this right?" He does his invisible frisbee bit again.

"Sometimes," I snap.

Roy elbows Kara. "I bet you twenty bucks he can't hit the center of that closest target."

Kara gives him a look. "Seriously, stop it. He's had a rough night."

"Oh, yeah, I heard you had a wittle nightmare." Roy sticks out his bottom lip. "Calling out for Mommy?"

Now I'm angry not just at him but at Kara. She told the others I was calling out in my sleep? I glare at her as I cross my arms, while at the same time removing some of my hidden throwing stars from the back of my waistband and slipping them into my hand.

"Have you ever killed someone?" I ask Roy.

Roy looks a little taken aback. "Uh, what? Of course not!" He laughs uneasily and looks at Kara like she'll agree with him on the ridiculousness of my question. She's frowning at me though.

I look out at the cardboard gangsters. "It's great you can hit a bullseye. Congrats. But your bullseye is right in the center of the abdomen. Very painful. Doesn't kill instantly. Internal bleeding and a slow death. Slowing them down works just as well." I throw one star and it pierces the thigh. "According to your target, I didn't get any points, but this guy won't be going anywhere fast. If he's holding a weapon..." I flick my wrist and send another star into his bicep. "He won't be able to hold onto it. And if it's dead you want..." I switch one star into my left hand and throw them both at the same time. One hits the guy square in the throat, the other between the eyes. "There, instant death. But we're superheroes, not sportsmen. I don't shoot for points." I walk over and retrieve my stars.

When I turn to walk back, I see everyone is staring at me. Again. Roy has his mouth open like he can't believe I just dissed his game that badly. Kara has a weird sad look on her face. Kaldur looks vaguely proud and the three others look impressed. I put my throwing stars away. I was trying to make a statement, not show off. I walk away from them. Before anyone can stop him, Hunter runs after me.

"Dude, that was awesome. That speech—so cool! But you should have ended it like, 'I don't shoot for points, I shoot for justice,' or something..."

I try to look at him but I can't. Seeing his face makes me think of him next to Batman, wearing my costume and taking my roll. Then a flash of my parents falling through the air...the screams... "Leave me alone."

He doesn't seem to hear the danger in my voice. "No, I'm serious, you were like a little ninja back there."

I turn around slowly. I'm seriously about to punch him in the face when suddenly I hear...

Jingle bells, Batman smells...

I freeze, my face going pale. I glance around the room. Kaldur is frowning at me like he doesn't know what's wrong with me. Roy's got an arrow notched but he's not pointing at me yet. Kara's hovering, like she's ready to step in to stop me. They all think I'm still angry at Hunter still. None of them hear it.

Which means it's coming from my earpiece.

The music continues. Jingle bells, Batman smells, Robin laid an egg...

It's a song Bruce and I came up with when he was too drunk on eggnog and I was too lightheaded and tired one Christmas Eve. We both were so carefree. It's one of my favorite memories. So I recorded a version of our Jingle Bells and had it made as my ringtone for when Bruce wants to call me when it's not an emergency. This is actually the first time it's happened.

...the Bat-mobile has lost a wheel, and now it's rolling away, HEY!

"Robin, you need to calm down," Kaldur says.

"Hey, I'm sorry, Dick, I didn't mean to upset you," Roy's saying. "I was just having some fun. But don't take it out on Hunter."

"Me?" Hunter squeals. "What did I do?"

Cat sighs. "Hunter, just shut up."

Kara cocks her head. "Does anyone hear Jingle Bells?"

My hands are shaking but now it's not from anger. In fact, my anger is all but dissipated. "I'm...I'm sorry," I say to the others. "Excuse me."

I run off towards the elevator. Skidding inside, I wait for the doors to close—which feels like an eternity—before finally bringing a hand to my ear and pressing the button to answer the call.

"Dick, thank goodness. I thought you had forgotten to charge your earpiece!"

I sink to the floor, practically crying with relief. "B-Bruce?"

"Yes, boy, it's me. I need you to listen."

I nod before remembering he can't see the gesture. "Okay?"

"Where are you?"

"I'm in a safe-house outside of Metropolis. Where are you? You've been gone for over twenty-four hours!"

"Are the remaining sidekicks there as well?"

"Yeah."

"And Sharp? Have you met up with Sharp yet?"

"Sharp? You know him?"

"Who do you think sent him to you? Now, Robin," he switches back to my superhero name, and I know it's his signal for us to get down to business, "I need you to listen. You cannot trust anyone in that building but Sharp."

"What?" I give a shaky laugh even though I of all people know Batman never jokes. "I can only trust Sharp? But what about Supergirl, or Aqualad or—"

"Quiet! Just listen to me! You have to go with Sharp. Trust me, it's for the best."

Now he sounds like he's sending me off to military school instead of telling me to release the guy I probably trust the least in this building. "For the best? Batman, I—"

"I need you to be professional about this, boy. Rule 17?"

"Yeah, the only people I can trust are Batman and maybe Alfred." And that's not even a joke. The "maybe" part is actually in the rule. "But what about Rule 345?"

"What about it?" He growls in his deep Batman voice. It sounds like he's gargling marbles and always makes me want to clap him on the back or give him a lozenge or something. "Look, Robin. Several people have been lying to you right from the start. One, if you follow my directions, you will find out soon enough."

Why does he choose now to be so cryptic? "Can't you just tell me where you are? I can't go get you or—"

"Too risky. I've already surveyed the area and decided that this one call was all I could chance."

"You're being difficult—"

"Boy, just shut up and listen!" Batman snaps at me.

I go quiet. "Sorry."

I can hear him heavily breathing on the other end. He needs to clear his throat or something because he's going to wear a hole through his tonsils making that sound. "Get Sharp. Get in costume. Follow him. Do as he says. Eventually, you will get to me."

I wait to make sure he's finished before saying, "Batman...Bruce...I don't understand. Why did you leave me all these clues that just led me to these clueless newbies...?"

"You'll soon find out. Robin...you'll soon find out they were lying to you the whole time. You got rid of the League communicators, right?"

"Of course. I knew there was a tracker inside them." I allow myself to feel proud for a whole second before Batman says—

"Doesn't matter. They each have a separate earpiece that allows them to communicate with each other and with their League mentors. I overheard their plans. They plan on faking the voices of their mentors to lure them all into a trap."

"What?" I jump up. The elevator has arrived (finally) and stops with a ding. "But I have to warn them!"

"Please, Robin. Do you really think they'll believe you? And you can bet the first thing out of their 'mentor's' mouths will be 'don't trust Robin'."

I swallow. "Why?"

"Because I escaped of course. They know by now that you know about their plans." I can practically hear him rolling his eyes.

"What? But I don't know anything. Why did they capture all the superheroes? What's with the fog? And is Alfred all right?"

"I don't know, Robin." Batman suddenly sounds very tired. It's a tone I don't usually hear and it scares me a little. "The only hope is the plan."

I take a shaking breath and run a hand through my hair. Suddenly, an ideas occurs to me. "How do I know you're not being faked?"

Batman growls, sounding irritated. "Fine then. When you were nine years old you told me what your biggest fear was. You were afraid of elephants."

I chuckle. "Okay, fine. So you're real."

"Now the plan. Robin, get your uniform, free Sharp, he'll give you instructions from there."

I frown, thinking. "Aqualad has the key to Sharp's cell."

"Will that be a problem?"

I straighten and tighten my voice. "No, sir."

"Good. I hope I'll see you soon, Dick."

"Okay, Bruce I—" I'll do my best.

But the signal cuts out and static blasts into my ear before I can finish. I turn the earpiece off.

Time to go to work.

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HA! Weren't expecting that were you? Next chapters my fav because Robin is awesome!

So stay tuned and review!

~youwishyouwerethiscool


	11. Chapter 11

Sometimes I get too happy writing these things and we end up with spastic nonsense. Luckily, this isn't one of those times. Prepare to see some character's you'll know and one you've actually already met...

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11

It feels good to finally have a real assignment. I hadn't realized how useless I had felt until I finally had something to do.

The elevator opens with a ding. Why couldn't they have stairs in his stupid building? It's really hard to put your game face on when your listening to elevator music.

When I get back to the gym, Kara is battling assassins. I drop into my defensive stance, ready for them to come at me. But then I realize that the others are standing on the sidelines and Kaldur is doing a running commentary.

"See, do you see how she puts her guard up? If you keep your hands up you will—Dick! What was that all about? Are you okay?"

I see now that the assassins Kara's fighting aren't real. I was wondering why she wasn't using her powers to pulverize them. She waves to Roy and he presses a button on a control panel. The assassins shimmer out of existence. I guess that's what they meant when they said we were going to do projections. Kara's wearing special bands around her wrists and ankles that I'm guessing are either to help her interact with the projections or some new type of fashion sense. (And they could be. Those things pop up out of nowhere, I swear.)

"Why'd you run off?" Kara comes up to me, her faced flushed from the fighting. "You were being really weird."

"Sorry. I had to go to the bathroom." Not my best excuse but I couldn't think of anything else with that stupid elevator music blaring in my ears.

"Must have been a real emergency," Roy says, with just a hint of smarminess in his voice. "Was it something you ate?"

Something I didn't eat, more like. I make a mental note to grab a banana after I break out Sharp. I haven't eaten in like twenty-four hours.

I ignore him and turn to Kaldur . "You call this training? Battling fake ninja assassins?"

I don't know if Kaldur believes my bathroom story or not, but he's humoring me at least. "Well, we seem to be lacking in real ninja assassins, so yes."

I shake my head. I have to play this carefully. I keep talking, saying the words I practiced on the elevator on the way down here. But at the same time, I'm studying him. "The only way you'll ever gain any real combat experience is by real combat." That's actually Rule 66. "And I know you've guys have actually been in real combat experiences before."

Kaldur frowns and comes towards me so we're not yelling across the room. Perfect. I hear the keys gangling against one another. Front right pocket. He's right handed. No water around so I can probably talk him into fighting hand-to-hand pretty easily. One key for the basement door, the other for Sharp's cell.

"So what are you saying?"

I shrug. "Well, I'm sure I was trained differently than you. I just want to see how my technique compares."

Kaldur blinks like he wasn't expecting me to say something so logical. "Wouldn't Roy be a better match?"

"I could take him out in a heartbeat," Roy says immediately.

I glance at him before turning back to Kaldur. "Why, because he doesn't have powers like me?"

Kaldur looks a little guilty. I hate that look. It's the "I'm sorry I'm better than you because I was born special and you weren't" look. "Well, yeah."

I put my hands on my hips. "For all you know, I could have powers."

"Um, I thought you could see the future?" Hunter pipes up. "At least, I thought that's what you said..."

"No, he never said anything," Raina says. Her eyes seem to be looking right at me. I mean, of course they are. I'm trying to say that they see right through me. But not like through me, more like inside... Okay, I don't know what I mean. She's seriously creeping me out though.

"Still, I bet I can beat you," I say, ignoring Raina's gaze. "Powers or no powers."

Kaldur cocks an eyebrow. "Really? Well, if you're sure..."

"Absolutely."

"I call playing the winner," Roy says, not one to be left out.

Kaldur and I move onto the mat. He's larger than me, older, and his powers of enhanced strength and speed give him the edge. Or so he thinks.

"Who do you think will win?" I hear Cat ask Kara on the sidelines.

"Um, well, I don't know..." Kara sounds uncomfortable. At least she's giving me the benefit of the doubt.

"Probably Kaldur though, right?" I glance at Cat and see she's checking her nails. "Since Robin's younger."

"Um...I don't..."

"Well, Robin, are you ready?" Kaldur calls to me.

I turn my focus away from the girls. "Sure. Bring it on, Aqualad."

Kaldur tenses and brings his fists up to his face. I do the opposite and relax my shoulders. Punches hurt more if your muscles are all bunched up. And this way I can react more fluidly.

Kaldur comes at me first. He throws a fist out but I see his eyes flicker down at the last second. I jump over his leg that shoots out, trying to catch me off guard. As I jump, I kick him in the chest. He goes staggering back while I backflip, land on my hands, and neatly bring down my feet so I'm standing in pretty much the same position again. Kaldur rubs his chest looking irritated.

"Well, I wasn't expecting that."

Rule 5. "Expect the unexpected."

Kaldur turns his neck to one side and then the other, making it crack. That's kind of gross and awesome at the same time. I would do that, but I'm afraid I might, you know, break my neck or something.

Next time he comes at me, it's more cautiously. Which is just what I wanted. I need him to get close so I can get the keys out of his pocket. And to do that without any of the others or him noticing is going to be a little challenging. So it's time for me to take control of this fight.

I take off running. Kaldur pauses for a second before following quickly after me. If I'm to pull this off, I'm going to need all the advantages I can get. So I head for the gymnastics stuff. Specifically, the high wire.

Plenty of times, I've been in high places. I don't really know why people are scared of them. I mean, sure, falling would suck, but as long as you trust your skills, that won't happen. But often enough, superheroes that risk their lives everyday tend to be scared of the same common day phobias everyone else has. I scramble up the ladder with Kaldur hot on my heels.

"Seriously?" He calls up from below me. "You want to fight in the air?"

"Just trying to be dramatic," I call back and keep climbing. When I get to the top, I slip off my shoes and socks and carefully step onto the wire.

I hear Kaldur swear behind me. I grin. Perfect. I would almost feel bad if Batman hadn't told me that they were lying to me. Now I really wish I hadn't told Kaldur my life story yesterday. What if he told all the others or they overheard on their secret coms or something?

Tightropes are hard since the farther out you get, the more precariously the rope moves underneath you. I glance down. We're high enough now that the others won't see me lighten Kaldur 's pockets. I just have to be sure he doesn't see.

I turn around, switching my feet to make sure my lead foot still holds my balance. Kaldur steps out onto the tightrope. He looks like he might break his jaw, his teeth are clenched so hard. But he's actually doing better than I thought he would. His arms only windmill once to regain his balance.

I can hear him muttering from here. "Don't look down...don't look down..." Classic. I'm impressed that he manages to meet me in the middle.

"Dramatic enough for you?" I ask, grinning.

"You are the most..." He says a few choice Atlantean words under his breath.

"Name calling? And I thought you were a professional." I look him over. He doesn't seem to be able to do much else other than stand there. "How about this. You just admit defeat now and—"

I'm surprised when he suddenly comes at me, his fist hitting me in the face. I roll with the punch, doing a backwards cartwheel to maintain my balance, but I'm still stunned. The rope wobbles under Kaldur as he tries to regain his balance after that sloppy hit.

I reach up and touch my cheek that I can already feel is swelling. Great. Rule 29 is if your enemy leaves a mark on you, make sure they regret it. But I have to finish this fast before the Super Brigade gets a call from their "mentors".

Kaldur tries to glare at me but he keeps glancing down at his feet. It's like he's making sure he's still standing on the rope. "That's for making me climb up here."

I ignore him. I have to make sure I do this perfectly. I come at him, my toes gripping the rope. At the last second, I dive into a front flip. I have to curve my body so I brush past him and fling my hands out. Grabbing the rope, I swing once completely around the rope and flip into the air, straightening myself out as I do and landing neatly. Then I run across the tightrope and get back on the platform. I throw on my shoes—no time for socks—and practically slide down the ladder.

"Dick! Robin! What the heck?" Kaldur calls for me to get back there. He still hasn't moved from his precarious position, probably too impressed by my skills. He looks like a cat stuck in a tree from down here.

And of course cats stuck in trees are Kara's speciality. She flies up, offering Kaldur her help. He refuses, still holding on to whatever pride he has left after getting humiliated by someone three years younger than him. I feel sort of bad because he might have been able to beat me in a fair fight. Plus, he did seem to actually care about me when we were having that little heart-to-heart chat last night.

But what happens next quickly changes any remorse I felt for doing this little plan. Roy, who was right in the middle of telling me off, freezes. He brings a hand slowly to his ear and taps an almost invisible device with his finger. "H-hello?"

I look up and see that Kara is doing the same thing. Kaldur probably would be too, but he seems to have a different sort of ringing in his ears right now.

So they did have communicators they didn't tell me about. Probably having conversations in secret about me and the others.

I know I only have a few moments before they recover from the initial shock of hearing their supers' voices. I stride across the gym to the elevator. Hunter suddenly pops right in front of me. That's right, I had forgotten he could teleport.

"You have to help Kaldur get back down." He looks like he's ready to enforce that statement too. I guess he hasn't noticed how everyone's a little busy with something else right now.

I sigh. Then without any warning, I strike out and punch him. He immediately tumbles back, eyes rolled up in the back of his head. "Sorry," I mutter, though I'm not sure I really mean it. I've been wanting do that for a while now.

I look over my shoulder when I get in the elevator to see Raina and Cat just standing there staring at me. They can't really seem to understand what I'm doing. Raina's eyes are watching me again, making my skin crawl. I really hope I was right about how she's limited to only reading the minds of things she touches. Cat is actually smirking at me, which I think is a little odd. But before I can question it further, someone calls outs my name.

"Dick Grayson!"

I look up to see that Kaldur has made it back to the platform with some minor help from Kara. Kara looks betrayed and Kaldur is staring down at me like he doesn't even know what to think. Roy has grabbed a bow and arrow and has them pointed at me but not fully drawn.

"Is it true?" Kaldur calls down.

As if I know what he's talking about. "You tell me." I hold up and jangle the keys I lifted from his pocket when I flipped around him back on the tightrope. I see his hand go to his empty pockets and his eyes widen.

"Roy, stop him!"

I see Roy bring his bow to full draw. I step out of the way as the door closes. A single arrow slips through, quivering in the elevator wall where my head was just moments ago. Then there's a ding and the elevator's smooth music starts up.

I run a hand through my hair and take a shaky breath. I pull my gloves out of my pocket and slide them on. Hacking into the elevator's system is easy. Just a few touches on the holo-screen and this elevator won't be going back to the gym floor any time soon. That should slow them down.

When the elevator finally opens again, I'm practically sweating. I need to get out of this building and away from here. I don't like how all the super powered people (and Roy) in this building now are my enemy and I don't know what they're doing. Having their resident Supergirl drill a hole to the first floor with her hands? Giving Hunter smelling salts so he'll wake up and teleport them up there? There's just too many unknowns.

I go to the closet I investigated on my "bathroom trip". Inside is the zeta tube I think Kara was talking about. I plug my gloves into it and hack the mainframe in a few seconds. It turns out to actually be an extremely cool piece of tech. It transports nonorganic items from any place they may be located. It must be some kind of alien technology. I type in my name for my uniform and a box pops up on my screen, asking for a password. I study it for a moment and then then type in "Wayne Enterprises". A little humming noise comes from the zeta tube and then stops. I open it to see my uniform, neatly folded and smoking slightly, sitting inside.

I change quickly right there in the kitchen. As I stick my mask to my face and put any weapons I brought with me back in my utility belt, I sigh. It feels good to be in uniform again. My cape feels almost like a security blanket.

I hear a rattling noise coming from the elevator shaft which isn't good. I quickly unlock the door to the basement and hurry down the steps.

I arrive at Sharp's cell and look inside. He's lying on the ground facing away from me. I pause for a second before reluctantly plunging the key into the lock. As the door opens, he looks up.

"Took you long enough."

"We don't have much time," I say. He follows me up the steps and into the kitchen. Then he takes the lead. "You know, you could have just told me that you were sent by Batman."

Sharp shakes his head as he opens the front door and steps outside. "Would you have believed me?"

"No," I admit.

"Well, then, that's why I did what I did." He gestures to the car parked out front. "Do you have the keys?"

"No," I admit again. I had forgotten we might need a getaway vehicle.

Sharp gives me a look before shaking his head. "Doesn't matter. I'll hot-wire it."

We both get in the car with me in the passenger's seat. Sharp reaches under the dashboard and in a few seconds the car starts up. I take note on how exactly he does it in case I ever need to make a quick escape in my future.

As we drive off, I feel the questions I didn't get to ask Batman bubble up. "Are we going to rescue Batman? Do you know where he's being held? Where are we going? Why did Batman choose you of all people?"

Sharp chuckles. "Look who's suddenly the talkative one. No, we're not going to rescue the Batman quite yet and not just because I don't know where he's being held. He contacted me right before he got captured. He had his suspicions something wasn't right. I had been in contact with him already, his source for crime underworld information. I told him about the operation that was going on all the assassin of the city being snatched up. But not big named ones, mind. The little backwater ones no one knows. Batman told me to investigate further but I got captured. But instead of knocking me off, they recruited me as a guard. Batman sent me a transmission telling me to find you right before every hero in the city went offline."

I listen carefully to everything he says, searching for holes. But it all seems to make sense. I look out the window of the car as we drive. It's overcast and I know it's going to start raining again. "So where are we going?"

"Well, since we can no longer trust those sidekicks since they believe their fake mentors, I think it's time you met some different sidekicks."

"But I thought all the other sidekicks were already captured?"

Sharp doesn't say anything and I get the feeling he's done answering questions.

We leave the small town and start driving back on the road we originally came in on. I see tall, dark skyscrapers far off in the distance. "We're going back to Gotham? I thought you said it wasn't safe."

Sharp's only answer is to turn on the radio. The weather forecaster calls for light showers throughout the day.

I eventually drift off which I rebuke myself for later. Batman may have told me to trust Sharp, but I didn't want to fall asleep in a car with him right next to me taking me to an unknown location. But I was tired. My nightmare last night made it feel like I ran a marathon instead of slept.

When the car suddenly stops, I jerk awake. I look around, disoriented. We're back in Gotham, it seems, in the ghetto district near the harbor called the Narrows. It's darker now and I would say about four o'clock. I slept away about four hours of the day. My stomach growls, reminding me that I forgot to grab that banana before leaving the safe house. I look out at the harbor's shipping warehouses, wondering if there's a pizza place nearby.

"Hungry?" Sharp grunts.

Yeah, and I'm about to take food from him. "No." Just then my stomach growls.

Sharp cracks a smile. "Come on." He gets out of the car and heads towards the warehouse on our left. I get out too, but more cautiously. Whenever Batman and I were here, we got attacked by goons the second we stepped out into open space. But nobody comes at me. I wrap my black cape around me and follow Sharp. He's still wearing his bright red cap and he's acting like a beacon for anyone unwanted to spot us.

Sharp holds open the door marked Employee's Only. Someone took spray paint and crossed out Employees and wrote Spuds in graffitied sprawl. I pause at the door.

"Something wrong?" Sharp asks.

I point at the sign. "This is a gang hideout." The "Spuds" or Potato Heads is a local gang in Gotham. Batman has dealt with them in the past. He didn't take me along since he said "it would be a waste of his lessons".

"No, I did that to deter any civilians," Sharps says. He taps the sign with his knuckles and the metal sound echoes around the empty street.

"Oh." I go through the door before Sharp picks up a blow horn and alerts every bad guy in the city we're here.

The warehouse, thankfully, seems empty. Chains hang from the ceiling and metal hooks sway above my head. Dusty crates are stacked like building blocks around the place. It smells like rusty metal and motor oil. The only light comes from the industrial style lights overhead that Sharp flickers on when he enters. They emit a buzzing sound that seems a thousand times louder in the completely quiet warehouse.

I stay back in the shadows as Sharp walks to the center of the warehouse. He signals over his shoulder for me to stay there and be quiet. I scan the area for signs of life. Nothing. It seems like this place is abandoned.

"Hello, ladies!" Sharp calls out to the room.

I flinch. Sharp's going to get us both killed or reported for disturbing the peace.

"Sharp?"

I automatically sink farther into the shadows. It's a girl's voice. A dark blue, hooded figure flies down. She has the hood pulled down so far I can't see her face. I mentally swear at myself. I didn't even think to look up and search the top of the crates for people. Rule 4: Always look up.

"Raven? Who is that?"

"It's the guy that brought me to you guys. The one I told you about."

Another girl jumps down from the crates. I frown in disgust. A whole army could have been up there and I didn't even notice.

The girl is dressed in green and purple. She's got a weird looking pole in her hands. She's wearing green glasses which she pushes up as she studies Sharp. "Why are you called Sharp?"

"Because usually I have a knife with me." Sharp holds his hands in the air and shrugs. "Right now I can't seem to find mine though."

Oh, that's right. I never did give him that back. Oh well. I frown at the two girls. The green and purple one seems familiar. But why do I feel like neither of them are Justice League sidekicks?

Suddenly, I get tackled from behind. Needlelike points dig into the skin of my shoulder as I fall forward.

My attacker is suddenly on top of me, punching me in the stomach. I grab their wrists and use my knees to throw them over my head. My attacker flips to their feet and goes to stand in front of the other girls. "Raven, it seems your friend brought a little sneak with him."

I see now that my attacker is a girl too. She's wearing a formfitting black outfit with hot pink highlights. She's wearing a headband with cat ears on it of all things and there's a whip attached to her belt.

Sharp tries to get between her and me. "No, I brought him. He's—"

"Wait, I know you," the girl says. Her head swivels around to look at him. "You're Sharp! But...you escaped! With Robin!"

I nearly choke on the air. I thought she had seemed familiar. And there's no mistaking those bright green eyes peering at me through her black mask. "Cat?"

"No, I'm a dog." She rolls her eyes. Then she does a double take. "Wait...Robin?"

"Robin!" The girl with the glasses and the staff pushes past her. "Why is he here?"

My eyes narrow and my hand goes to my belt. "Enigma?"

"Who else?"

I frown. Enigma is the Riddler's daughter. But she's a villain. Why would Sharp...

"Robin, stay calm," Sharp says. He's trying to sound like he's still in control of the situation, but he's probably the only one here without a weapon. "This is the other team I thought you should meet."

I point at Cat. "But she's—"

"I lied, obviously." Cat rolls her eyes. "My name is actually Kitrina Falcone. And the only reason I told you my real name is because Catwoman suggested I should when I finally met you one day."

I stare at her. Then I can't help it, I start laughing. Everyone else flinches at my crazy sounding laugh. I guess I do sound sort of insane. "You're telling me...that you're Catgirl?" I lean against the crate next to me, trying to catch my breath. My laughter still echoes around the room.

In case the outfit didn't give it away, the name sure did. Batman did some research a few years back about Catwoman and for a while, he thought she was the missing daughter of the Falcone's, a famous crime family in Europe. But apparently they had a "chat" where she told him that wasn't the case. That she had actually found a girl with a mysterious and painful past and was probably that long lost daughter they were thinking of.

I like Catwoman, I really do. Whenever we battle her when she's robbing some place, we have the best time. She always gives me tips on my fighting technique that especially help me since I'm sort of on the smaller side. Plus, she brings out a side in Bruce you never see. He actually does banter and tease her and sometimes chuckles at her really good insults. And it's hilarious after we get home and I ask him, "So are you guys thinking of settling down and having kittens then?" He goes so red in the face and can't do anything but sputter for five minutes straight. It's the only time I can ever get one up on the Bat.

So I guess this is the famous "Catgirl" Catwoman said she was training.

Kitrina goes red. "Yeah. Is there a problem?"

"No, no problem. Nice outfit," I say, still grinning. "And of course you're here with Enigma."

Enigma glares at me. "I remember last time we fought you broke my staff, didn't you?" She holds her staff closer to her. It's got a big question mark on the top of it. I know from experience that she can use it to zap people and levitate stuff. She turns to Sharp. "You do know who this is, right?"

"He's Batman's dorky sidekick!" Kitrina shakes her head. "I know he freed you or whatever, but why did you bring him here? And how do you know where here is!"

Sharp makes a placating gesture with his hands. "Let me explain. Just calm down. Both sides need explanations."

I cross my arms. "I don't need an explanation. It seems pretty clear to me. You've been playing both sides this whole time."

Sharp shakes his head. "No, just the opposite. I've been trying to save whoever I can on both sides."

I wince. Rule 246: heroes are indiscriminate.

The other girl, the only one I don't know, says in a surprisingly clear voice, "He's been saving all the sidekicks. On both sides."

I frown. "What do you mean?"

"Are you stupid or something?" Enigma says. She points her staff at me. "Don't you know it's not just the superheroes that have been disappearing all around the world?"

"All the super villains have disappeared too." Kitrina looks at me sadly. "And so have their sidekicks. We're the only ones left."

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bum...bum...baah! Incredible. Weren't expecting to see them were you? Coming up: Robin: World's Greatest Actor! So excited...

~youwishyouwerethiscool


	12. Chapter 12

Ladies and gentlemen, the event you have been awaiting...Chapter 12!

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12

Sharp explains that though Batman sent him to help me out, he ran into a few other sidekicks. And apparently, being the all around great guy that he is, he couldn't leave them to get captured either. Raven was the first one he met and she was the one he set up this villain safe house for. She had her friends, Catgirl and Enigma, stay there too.

Then Kitrina takes over the explaining. Apparently she had heard that the remaining superhero sidekicks were getting captured and only a few of the remaining big ones were left. And apparently, she is a member of Batman's sidekick training program. So she just went to the meeting after school like she always did and was just as surprised as everybody else when all the best known sidekicks barged in the door. She played along to see if they knew what was going on. She only left when I got Aqualad stuck up on the high-wire, stole the keys to the cell, and broke Sharp out of the detention center.

"I seriously thought he was going to have an aneurism," she says. "Then Supergirl went and started pushing the button for the elevator which of course you had broken." She grins. "It was hilarious. Eventually, they figured it out and Supergirl had to pound her way up the elevator shaft, but by then, you were gone."

"Wow, who would have known that you had that in you?" Enigma says snootily, looking at me.

We're all gathered around a small fire that Sharp built. The girls dragged down the blankets from the tops of the crates, which was where they had stored them when they heard Sharp banging on the sign outside. Only Enigma stands a little ways off, listening but not wanting to get to close to me. After practically every sentence I say she has to make a comment.

"And that's when I made my escape," Kitrina leans back, looking proud of herself. "Of course, I didn't know Sharp was who Raven was talking about when she said some guy was helping us out."

"And your hair? It's not the same," I point out.

"I was wearing a wig, duh," she rolls her eyes at me. "I have to keep my identity a secret somehow."

"Who are you a sidekick to?" I ask Raven. "I've never heard of you before."

"Well, I've never heard of you either," Raven says acidly. I'm a little taken aback by her anger. Her face is still hidden under her hood and I can't even tell if she's looking at me or not.

Sharp puts a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Raven isn't really a true villain. She's just a victim of circumstance."

"Aren't we all?" Enigma says sarcastically.

Sharp looks at her, annoyed. "Our next step is pretty straightforward..."

"The super sidekicks will come after him, won't they?" Kitrina interrupts. She looks at me. "I mean, you should have seen Aqualad's face..."

I feel bad but just shrug it off. "I'll know where they are." I pull up my holo-screen and show them the four blinking dots. "That's them right there. They're still outside of Gotham."

Sharp chuckles. "You put trackers on them? You're one devious little kid."

I shift uncomfortably. Enigma lets out a snorting laugh. "Him? You think he is devious? He's as goody-two-shoes as it gets."

I'm glad she actually can talk in something other than questions. Even if it's just one sentence.

"Don't you remember?" she asks. I guess it's back to questions. "You showed up with the Batman and ruined my father's plan, all the while reciting rules at us like a textbook."

I actually do remember that fight. It had been one of my field tests. Batman had made me recite any Rules I used to show my just how important they are. Then, while he took out the Riddler, I took out the henchies and Enigma. In the process, I had destroyed her staff, which I guess—now that she had a new one—hadn't been as irreplaceable as she had cried about that day.

"Then I say, for now we grab some grub," Sharp says, clapping his hands together and rubbing them. The sound they make makes me wince. That guy needs lotion on those bad boys because that sounded like two sheets of sandpaper rubbing together.

Right on the mark, I hear my stomach growl loudly. I haven't eaten for what, almost two days now?

Kitrina frowns. "I don't know if our resident superhero would approve of our usual methods of getting food."

I immediately get what she's implying. "What, you mean you steal it?"

"Well, we don't have any money..." Raven says in a quiet voice.

I pause for a moment, considering our options. I don't have any money on me either. And we aren't in the most tourist-friendly part of town where hotdog vendors are standing under umbrellas on every street corner. I wonder where exactly they're planning on getting this food and how. But my stomach grumbles and I consider Batman's Rule Number 967. When in certain situations, you can't be a hero in order to be a hero, do what you must. This is followed by Rule 968: never break ANY of the Rules. It kind of makes me laugh that Batman almost didn't think of that one until he got to the nine hundreds, but oh well. He needed to limit that last rule somehow.

"Tell me what I have to do," I say to them.

Kitrina grins. "Follow me."

I don't like going into situations blind. And Kitrina is basically forcing me to do just that. She dragged me along as well as Raven. Sharp volunteered to stay back with Engima (who wasn't allowed to come because apparently she's not stealthy enough in her green and purple Barney outfit with her great big question mark staff. Go figure.) Since I'm getting nowhere with Kitrina, I try to get some info out of Raven.

"So do you know where we're going?"

"Don't talk to me."

"Can you please tell me where we're going?"

"Turn around and shut up."

"Pretty please?"

"Do I need to kill you, Bird Boy?"

Okay, sheesh. What's up her butt? "Alright then, never mind."

"I thought so."

I move a little bit away from Raven. I'm getting some weird vibes off that girl and they're not "I'm excited I get to look for food with Robin" vibes. I glance over to Kitrina who just smirks at me from over her shoulder before turning back around.

I don't like following her. This, after all, is my turf. Batman had me memorize all these creepy back alleys and suspicious warehouses.

"We are going to do this stealthily, right?"

Kitrina glances at me again, annoyed. "Yeah, of course."

Okay, good. Because I don't need anymore bad press.

Kitrina then continues, "What, don't want to be chewed out by Aqualad again?"

It's like she read my mind. "No, that's not why."

"Really? Because I could hear you guys talking pretty loudly and he sounded pretty harsh."

"Shhh," Raven snaps angrily, like she's annoyed that Kitrina's actually having a conversation with me. "We're here."

I'm a little confused about where exactly here is. Old, dingy apartments surround us with clotheslines crisscrossing over our heads. We better not be stealing from the normal people.

"This is a gang hideout. They've got a huge storage of food in there," Raven continues.

"It wouldn't happen to be the Potato Heads would it?" I can see where someone has spray painted Spuds on a window on the second floor.

"How should I know?" Kitrina says. She jumps up and grabs the lowest level of a pulled up ladder attached to a fire-escape. She then climbs up the rest of it. Raven simply flies up. I hesitate for just a second before following them.

"Don't worry," Kitrina says. "No one has been in here for weeks." She shimmies along the edge of a wall before ducking into a broken window. I follow her, all senses on high alert.

Raven follows, her face hidden in the shadows of her hood still. "Wait! Did you hear that?"

I strain my ears, listening. Sure enough...

"Voices!" Kitrina's eyes widen in surprise behind her mask. "But..."

"We should leave," I say.

"No, we're low on supplies," Raven says. "Just be quiet." She flies silently into the room and disappears into the shadows. It's actually sort of creepy how they literally seems to swallow her. It reminds me of what I do.

Kitrina curses under her breath. "I hate it when she does that."

I glance around the room. It's musty in here. It looks like this gang has been stealing from goodwill. There's boxes full of clothes and shoes. At least Raven was right about this being a storage unit.

Suddenly, we hear a far off shout for help.

"Raven!" Kitrina bounds from the room before I can stop her.

I stay still for a moment, listening. More low voices coming from downstairs. Kitrina hasn't been spotted yet. I follow when she went but a little more cautiously. No gunfire, which is good. They came unarmed. Though, I suppose they might still have knives.

I make my way from the room and down the stairs. I go past the first floor and into the basement. The voices get louder as I descend.

"...still more left. I thought they picked up all these super kids."

"Nah, remember, the said they still had some of those little sidekicks left to roundup."

"Ha! Perfect! Is means we'll get twice the payload for bringing them...whoever this is."

The voices are gruff, making me picture large men in their late thirties, early forties. Probably bald or with some type of evil facial hair.

Another voice suddenly joins the mix. This one younger, a late teen or young adult. "Aw, if I knew this wasn't just going to be a food run I would have brought my gun. It's no fair you got have all the fun, Matthews."

"Eh, shut your yap, kid. Now help me out here, will you?"

I press myself against the wall. The staircase opens up to a large concrete room filled with boxes of canned goods. Small, dirt and cobweb covered windows near the ceiling provide just enough light to illuminate the room.

I hear the sound of a garage door being pulled open and freeze. A little more light shines into the room. The door must be around the corner of the wall I'm leaning against since I can't see it. I hear men grunting and talking and low tones as the move the boxes and throw them with a thump onto what I suppose is a truck outside. I glance around the corner quickly to get a look at the scene.

The two men I heard talking at first seem to be the oldest ones of the group and appear to be the ones in charge (and yes, one of them is bald). They're supervising all the teenagers as they haul the boxes of food to their truck. I suppose the younger guys must be the Spuds (since they have similar dirty shirts with a picture of a potato crudely drawn on the back).

Raven is unconscious and propped up against some boxes with her hands tied together. Her hood has fallen back and I can see her face at last in full. Her features are surprising. She has short, bob-length dark blue hair and fine, delicate features. Her skin is so pale is almost looks gray. I can see from here that she looks like she has a small red diamond between her eyebrows, almost like a traditional Buddhist or Hindu bindi but not quite.

I look around the room, searching for Kitrina, and I spot her crouching behind some boxes. I try to think of some ways I could get her attention without alerting anyone else. Nothing comes to mind.

Kitrina creeps around the boxes, keeping low, and makes her way toward Raven. I don't know what she's thinking. That she's going to just grab Raven's unconscious body and haul her back up a flight of stairs without anyone noticing?

"Hey! Who are you?"

Well, saw that coming.

"I recognize that one. That's Catgirl!"

Kitrina pounces toward the two guys who seem to be in charge. I don't know what the outcome of this fight will be. Kitrina's got some pretty good skills, but they outnumber her, even if they are normals.

But nobody reacts like I expected them to. The Potatoes just straighten up and watch, like this is just an excuse for a break with entertainment. The two guys watch her come at them with not a hint of apprehension or fear on there faces. Most bad guys feel maybe one of those emotions when someone dressed in a crazy costume is running at them. But these guys just grin like they can't wait for the fight.

That right there would have been enough for me to turn back and try something else (not that I would've tried running straight at them in broad daylight in the first place). But Kitrina keeps coming, crouching low, and slicing at one of the guys with her claws.

He doesn't even react. In fact, all I can hear is a scrap of nails on a chalkboard. Everyone in the room winces. Then he throws out a hand, punching Kitrina in the stomach and sending her flying backwards. I'm about to make a move toward her, but she straightens up, panting.

"Who are you?" she asks, holding her stomach. Her other hand has unattached her whip from her belt.

The guy just grins at her, an ugly sneer that makes me want to go over and punch his stupid chalkboard face. "I'm a nobody girly. But once we take you out, we won't be for long."

We. He said we, like he and his bald friend both were going to take Kitrina down. I almost call out a warning to Kitrina as she turns to go for the seemingly defenseless bald guy. And indeed, he is a little skinnier than his buddy.

The bald guy raises his arms like he's going to surrender as Kitrina comes at him, whip ready. It's weird that no one else moves to help him. Even his friend, standing just a few feet away, just stands there grinning. How can Kitrina not see these warning signs?

Then the bald man clenches his raised hands into fists and three boxes fly up from behind Kitrina and smack into her back. She collapses forward and is still.

I whip my head back around the corner. Impervious skin and levitation. These villains would be better off going for Superman in Metropolis, not hanging out in Gotham. Batman is highly protective, making Gotham a "no powers" zone. Even the villains follow similar regulations.

"Another one to add to our cash haul," the Invincible Chalkboard says.

Levitation guy agrees, "Two more that their minions skipped over. This is two perfect. See what I did there? Two? Too?"

"Shut up, you moron. Why don't you have a look around and see if anymore of them are hiding around? And the rest of you—what you doing standing around? Keep loading, we're on a schedule!"

I make my way back up the stairs as quickly and quietly as I can. Luckily, these steps are made of concrete instead of metal so it's easier for me to do just that.

I head back to the room filled with clothes. Batman always said that when coming up against super powered people, you need an actual logical plan. I crouch behind some boxes as I listen to the levitation guy come bumbling up the stairs, grumbling under his breath. He stops, glances around the room, and then continues.

I look at the boxes. A smile slowly stretches across my face. I've got an idea.

Batman always said that my age would be my greatest weapon.

Those guys won't even see it coming.

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And...cliff hanger. So sorry but not actually. Hope you liked it! Review!

*youwishyouwerethiscool


	13. Chapter 13

I was feeling generous today so I figured I would grace you guys with the next chapter. How will Robin save Catgirl and Raven? Read to find out...

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13

I open the boxes and go through each, looking for clothes that fit me. I end up with an oversized, rainbow-colored poncho thing made out of a weird rough material that my friends at my school call a "drug rug". I don't know if that's it's actual name (since my friends are all private school) and there's no way I'm going to ask some random person if that's the name of their coat/poncho.

I find a baggy pair of jeans that don't have too many holes in them. Everything hangs off me when I put it on. It smells like this stuff has been sitting in these boxes for way too long. Every step I take in them sends out a little puff of dust.

I peel off my mask slowly so it doesn't leave a red mark. The super strong adhesive will rip my eyebrows right off if I'm not careful. I take off my gloves and attach them to my utility belt under the poncho. Then I rub some grime from the floors and walls onto my face and any other part of my body that is still showing. To finish it all off, I find a worn bandana to rap around my head. There always seems to be someone in a gang wearing a bandana. I figure I'll fit right in.

I finally turn and look at myself in the reflection of the window. I look pretty...homeless. But that works, I'll be able to play my part perfectly. I know from Batman's lessons that if you wear something loud or distracting, or have some type of certain outspoken physical trait, people will tend to remember just that, no other specifics. "Uh, sorry officer, I don't remember what the guy's face looked like. But he did have on these awesome zebra print shoes..." Well, the bandana and rainbow drug rug should do it for me. Not that it really seems to matter much about my secret ID since whoever these mysterious bad guys are already have had us all figured out for a while now.

I'm still wearing my costume underneath the whole ensemble. Luckily, it's pretty much skintight so it doesn't feel too weird. I did have to tuck my cape into the back of my jeans (not comfortable by the way) in order to stop it from showing. My utility belt feels sort of bulky underneath this all, but there's no way I'm taking it off. I'm still wearing my combat boots and there's not much I can do to hide them. I'll just have to hope these guys aren't smart enough to look down and wonder why the homeless kid is wearing high-end utility combat boots.

I run my hands through my hair, mussing it up, and rub my eyes enough to make them red. I take several quick breathes, driving my heart rate up, and concentrate on my hands until they're quivering.

I took some acting classes at school by Batman's suggestion. I actually got pretty good at it, enough to be invited to the school's drama club. The Bat had me pull out of it thought since he was afraid people would start wondering why I was so good at acting. (Perhaps because I have to play pretend almost everyday of my life?)

I glance out the window. It's just starting to get dark and I don't know when the guys downstairs are going to be finished with their job. It's time to get this show on the road.

I crouch down behind a pile of mouse-chewed coats. I wait in silence as I hear bald Levitation Man's footsteps drawing nearer again. He's finally finished checking all the other rooms.

I back up until I knock into a stack of boxes, sending the topmost one toppling to the floor. The footsteps freeze outside the door.

I take a deep breath and let the best performance of my life take control.

I curl up in a ball, cowering as the boxes and coats around me fly up into the air and smash against the wall. "Don't hurt me!" I shriek.

"Aha! Another one. Perfect." Rough hands grab me by the front. "Whew, you smell."

It's the drug rug, actually. "I'm-I'm s-sorry, I didn't—please, I d-didn't do a-anything."

"Eh, shut your whining, kid. Little wimp." Baldy drags me out by the collar. I stumble as I try to keep up.

All the way down the stairs we go. I trip once and cut my lip falling down a few steps before Baldy catches me. He swears at me all the way after that, telling me to just walk straight and shut up. But I can't stop my nervous mumbling.

"P-please, sir. I was scared."

"Then why were you hiding, kid?"

"I was scared!" I let some tears fall down my face, mixing the grime I rubbed there and leaving streak marks. "I can't go home! I just wanted a place to hide! I didn't know this was your house!"

"Shut up, I said!" Baldy yanks me hard by the collar, causing me to let out a pitiful squeak. Now we've reached the basement.

"Hey, who you got there, Matthews?"

"I thought it was another one of those super kids, but I'm not so sure. Either way, he was upstairs."

"P-please..." I moan, hiccuping as I cry.

"Jones, we're almost done here...who's Matthews got?" It's the teenage guy again. "Another one of these kids? Man you guys will make a killing." He seems to glance at the girls (who I see are starting to come to consciousness) and cock his head. "Say...you've got plenty of them now. How 'bout you you let us just have one. Seems fair, since we're all here, helping and everything..."

"Shut it, kid," Matthews says. I am guessing those are his two favorite words. "You're here as muscle, nothing else. And I didn't see you lift a finger to take out any of these kids. Jones and I did all the work. So keep loading and close your mouth before I wiggle my little finger and rip your tongue out of your head."

Jones crosses his arms. "I'm not sure this one is a super anything. How old are you?"

I look up still him with tear filled eyes. "Nine." I can pass for nine, right? "Oh, please sir! Let me go! Please!"

"Stop whining! God, first these annoying sidekicks now this. I get all the crappy operations."

I start bawling even louder.

"Hey, Snotrag," Jones calls. At first I thought he was talking to me, but then the older teenage guy walks over. Wow, what a wonderful name. "You kids are in a gang. Can you like...talk to this one or something?"

Snotrag gives him a withering look. Obviously, someone's still ticked about the earlier argument. "My gang is the toughest of the tough. We don't deal with babies."

I screw up my face and cry even harder. Then I sense something coming towards me and I force myself to stay still and take it. Pain erupts in the left side of my face. He slapped me!

"I said SHUT UP!" Matthews roars in my face.

I wither away from him, holding a hand to my face and sniffling as quietly as I can. I'm a little in shock too. I've never been slapped before. Punched, kicked, dangled over vats of chemicals, sure. But slapped?

"That's better," he chuckles. "See? That's how you deal with kids."

Oh, I am so going to hurt him.

"Hey, these two girlies are waking up," Jones' voice calls.

"Tie gags for them. I don't want anymore whining." He turns to Snotrag. "Tell your boys to load into the truck. We're going to be getting out of here soon."

Perfect. I watch as all the gang members disappear outside. Now it's just us and the super powered men. I hug my hands to my chest while at the same time putting on my gloves. I let out a few more tears so I don't appear suspicious.

Matthews comes over and gets in my face again. "Look, kid. You better not tell anyone what went down today. And I mean nobody. Because if you do—"

"You'll hunt me down and kill me?" I say.

Matthews seems surprised. It's the first sentence I've formed without sniffling.

"Child abuse is a very serious felony," I say, blinking to clear my eyes.

"Huh?" He stares at me, dumbfounded, as I stand up. I wipe the blood from my split lip.

"No talking," I say, wiggling a finger in front of his face.

"What, but—you..."

I wheel back and punch him in the face. Once then twice for good luck. (Rule Number 29, after all) Matthews hits the ground with a thump. "I said shut it."

I turn to Jones who has a similar expression of confusion there. I let my lower lip tremble and some more tears spill as I come towards him. "Please, mister! I didn't mean to hurt him!"

"What the—"

I don't let him gather his wits. I jump up and flip over him. While I'm in the air, I remove a device Batman calls the Concussioner and stick it to the top of Jones' head. He may have invincible skin, but that doesn't stop his brain from taking a hit. The Concussioner delivers I high powered thumping to the back of the head and causes the brain to ricochet around inside the skull. Ingenious, really. Batman had them made for opponents just like this one. He got the idea watching one of the Academy's football games (right before turning to me and saying that I am never playing football).

I land, doing a few handsprings to drain the momentum, and turn just in time to see the Concussioner go to work and for Jones to let out a little shriek as his brain gets smacked around. He slumps to the floor with quiet the serious concussion. Maybe even memory loss. Now wouldn't that be funny?

But I'm not about to stick around to watch. I pull the Concussioner back off Jones' head and put it back on my utility belt. I pull off my disguise and leave it on the floor. It feels good to be out of those disgusting clothes.

Being just in my uniform helps me focus. I quickly pat down Jones and Matthews for any weapons. As I suspected, I don't find any. Super powered people tend to have too much confidence in their powers so they think they don't need to carry any guns or knives.

I get out my Swiss Army knife from my utility belt and go over to the girls. Raven's eyes are wide as she stares at me while I cut her bonds. I move onto Catgirl, but Kitrina lets the ropes fall away. Apparently, she has some of her own tricks up her sleeves.

"Nice performance, Robin. You had us convinced." Kitrina lets me help her stand.

Raven hovers to her feet, ignoring my hand. "I didn't even recognize you. I thought they had really found some bawling little kid."

"Let's talk on the move," I say. "We've got to get going." I don't know when the Potato Heads are going to come back in here wondering what's taking their buds so long.

Raven raises her hand and mutters something under her breath. One of the boxes flies up and follows us as we move. "Are you really only nine?" she asks.

I frown. "No. I'm thirteen." Again with the age thing.

"And it's a good thing too," Kitrina intercepts, "since I don't think I can withstand such a handsome face." She smiles at me, eyebrow raised.

I feel heat creeping in my face. Is she just teasing? But then I realize something that her words evoked. "My mask!"

They both watch me as I pull my extra masks out of one pouch on my utility belt and stick one carefully back on my face.

"Oh wow, now I totally can't tell what you look like," Raven says sarcastically.

I glare at her.

She stares at me before turning away and putting up her hood.

The rest of the trip back to the wharf with our box of food is in silence.

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Think you've figured out what's going to happen next? I bet you're wrong. Prepare for the plot twist...

€youwishyouwerethiscool


	14. Chapter 14

I believe I've held you in suspense long enough. Things get a little dicy in this chapter so hold on tight!

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14

I lean back on the cold warehouse floor feeling completely wiped.

"And then he started crying some more and totally demolished them!" Kitrina's telling Enigma and Sharp all about what happened as we finish off the roasted hotdogs.

"He acted like such a wimp, I didn't even realize he was faking," Raven says. She's undoubtedly smirking under that hood.

I close my eyes. I ate three hotdogs and two full cans of green beans. Everyone stared at me in disgust while I did, but if they think I'm going to survive off junk food, they're dead wrong. It was my first meal in two days. I hadn't realized how hungry I was until I practically killed myself eating a hotdog that was still partially on fire. Now I feel like I could sleep for weeks.

"Wow," Enigma says. She almost sounds like she's impressed, but then she adds, "I bet Batman would die of embarrassment if he had to watch you do that, don't you think?"

I sit up and glare at her. "No." Rule 46 bares evidence to just that.

"You are one sneaky little kid," Sharp says appraisingly to me.

I lean back again. "Yeah, whatever." I'm too tired to argue that I'm not a little kid. I'm too tired to argue my reasons. I want to sleep.

I eventually drown out the girls' voices and drift off...

I'm walking down a corridor. I can hear voices all around me. Some are louder, other's quieter. All of them are voices I know.

Aqualad's: "What have you done! You're a traitor! You'll never be one of us..."

Batman's: "...I hope I'll see you soon, Dick..."

My mother's: "My little Robin..."

And over and over again, the voice of the thief I stopped in the alley: "First comes the anagnorisis, and the peripeteia soon shall follow."

Suddenly, I reach the end of the corridor. Raina is standing there, her piercing blue eyes staring at me. She tilts her head and smiles.

I go past her, feeling like I'm on air. The door in front of me opens on it's own and I glide through. Suddenly, I'm overwhelmed by lights and a beeping sound.

Blue red orange red green purple blue red yellow green purple purple orange...blue red orange red green purple blue...

The beeping gets louder and louder and the hues brighter and brighter. And all at once there are hands shoving me away, out of the room, farther away. I turn and look and see Raina, eyes dancing with blue fire. She opens her mouth to speak—

"Robin!"

I jolt awake and punch out at however is grabbing me. Opening my eyes, I see it was Kitrina, glaring at me and nursing a sore shoulder.

"Sorry, but you were talking to yourself and you were getting too loud."

I try to get myself to calm down, breathing deeply. My eyes flicker around the room. I've been so stupid! How could I have not seen...?

"Did you wake him up?" Enigma comes over, staff raised like she's ready to hit me. "Are you trying to wake the whole city up?"

"What?" I get up on shaky legs. I look at Kitrina. "You did wake me up. Thank goodness...I don't think I would have lasted much longer."

"Had a nightmare?" Raven asks. She and Sharp are hunched by the fire.

Sharp looks over at me, frowning. "Maybe it was the green beans."

"Shut up, all of you." I hold a hand to my forehead and start to pace. "...would explain why they could track them...and why they were there without question...how they found Zatanna...control agent with the ability to take an ethereal form...ah...and the mist..."

"Robin, we are seriously wondering about you're sanity here," Kitrina says. "Clue us in."

I turn to her, getting right up in her face. "I need you to focus. How long did you know Hunter and Raina?"

Kitrina blinks at me. "Since the beginning of...um, no...when we started training I guess. A few weeks I suppose."

I nod. Everything is coming together. But one thing doesn't add up. I look over to where Sharp and Raven are sitting. Of course...

Sharp stares back at me. "What is it, Robin?"

I pause, staring down at the warehouse floor. Slowly, I plan begins to formulate in my mind. After a few moments, I look up at Sharp. "I know what's happening."

Sharp stares at me harder. "You figured it out?"

"Yes." I look away from him. "It's Hunter and Raina. They're not what they seem."

"What do you mean? Who are Hunter and Raina?" Enigma asks.

"They're two kids who were doing the program with me," Kitrina explains. She frowns. "But what does that have to do with us?"

"Everything. Don't you see?"

"But aren't they still with those Justice League sidekicks?" Raven asks.

I nod grimly. "Kitrina, this is very important. I need you to focus." This part was critical. I needed to make them all think I had realized just enough while at the same time not giving away how much I knew. "When we went into Batman's secret room at Central. What happened?"

Kitrina blinks. "Um...you sent off some kind of hidden bomb and then we all ran for it before we all got blown up. Supergirl actually had to drag you out of there."

I nod. "Do you remember anything about...lights?"

Kitrina stares at me with blank eyes. "Lights?"

"Yes, flashing different colors, all around the room. I was watching them which is why I was late leaving the school. Do you remember them?"

"I—well...no."

I smacked my fist against a crate. "I thought so. It's because of Raina." I turn away from them, thinking hard. "Raina and Hunter lied to us about their abilities. They are not limited by touch. I had started to expect as much back when Hunter had teleported right in front of me to stop me from getting to Sharp. Why would someone who is limited in such a way suddenly have the ability to teleport their entire body? Of course, at the time I had written it off as perhaps a minor exception to his abilities. But my dream last night confirmed it." I have a seat on the floor so I'm at eye level with them all. "Hunter and Raina were lying from the start. They probably were planted by the enemy, whoever that is. A spy on the inside."

"And how did your dream confirm that?" Enigma asks, for once without a hint if sarcasm.

I smile. "Batman has had me trained in all the major disciplines. Meditation is a common practice in many of them. It helps to build up an immunity to any kind of psychic attack. I think Raina used her powers in an attempt to block our memories of Batman's hidden clue." I didn't mention that in my dream, the lights were in the part of my mind with the other thoughts I had pushed to the back of my brain.

"The clue...you remember it?" Kitrina asks.

I close my eyes. How could I forget? It's been flashing around in my head since I woke up. "Blue red orange red green purple blue red yellow green purple purple orange." I add the appropriate pauses between each color, mulling it over as I say it.

"I'm usually very good at riddles," Enigma says, "but I don't have a clue about what that means."

"Maybe it was nothing," Sharp suggests. "A ruse to throw off whoever it is that's tracking you kids down."

I shake my head. "No. Batman knew I would find that place. It's just his style." I rub my eyes. "I'll have to think it over more. In the mean time, we have to warn the sidekicks."

"Why should we help them?" Raven asks.

"Yeah. Why should we?" Enigma sneers. "It's not like they would return the favor. They would probably help these people round us up themselves."

"Hey, they're not exactly my biggest fans right now either," I say defensively, thinking about Kaldur's outraged face as I left him dangling on a tightrope. "But I think they should at least know they're being spied on."

Sharp shakes his head. "No, absolutely not. They're probably already captured by now."

I glare at him. "No." I bring up my holo-screen with a few gestures, hoping I'm right. I sigh in relief. "They're all in Gotham again." Now I'm frowning. "How'd they...?" My eyes widen. "The car!"

I run outside, with the others jumping to their feet and exchanging confused looks.

I'm momentarily blinded by the sudden blinding light that assaults my eyes. It's morning. Seagulls squawk at me from the roofs of the warehouses. I blink I few times and see the car is still there, mostly none the worst for ware. Somebody slashed the tires and spray painted the windows, but the interior wasn't breached. That's good. I'm a little surprised though, since it was unlocked and already hot-wired, ready to go.

I open the passenger's side door and slide into the seat. They would know me well enough to know that I would have been suspicious of anyone hanging back around the car or placing anything under the carriage. So if they were going to be doing anything to the car, it would be when I was distracted and didn't have a good vantage point.

I feel around under the dash and after a few seconds of searching, my fingers find a small circular device. I pull it off, feeling irritated. Kaldur was smarter than I gave him credit for. A tracker.

I was so assured of my own ability to place secret trackers on the sidekick brigade, I didn't even pause to consider that they might do the same. Stupid. Rule 24: Arrogance comes before the fall.

I throw the tracker onto the ground and smash it underfoot. That's the second time now they've been tracking me without me realizing it until too late.

"Was that a tracking device?" Enigma asks, eyes wide.

"Yes." I turn to Sharp. "Our safe house is no longer safe."

Sharp swallows. "We need to move now. We'll be harder to track if we all take separate paths. Here..." He takes out a piece of paper and a pen and draws each of us a different map. "We'll all meet up in an hour. If one of us doesn't show, assume they've been captured."

We all nod our agreement.

"Okay, good luck everyone."

We all start moving off. Sharp grabs my arm roughly.

"Robin. We have to assume the sidekicks are against us. If what you said is true, this Raina girl has probably brainwashed them by now."

I look him in the eye. "Okay." Brainwashing...

Sharp nods, believing he got through. "Alright. See you in an hour." He runs off, disappearing around a corner. Kitrina smiles at me before she climbs up on top of a dumpster and disappears over the roof. Enigma and Raven take their separate pathways too. I'm alone.

I look down at my map. I follow it for a few blocks before doubling back. Forward again, then doubling back. Once I'm sure I've thrown anyone who's following me off my path, I go back to the warehouse.

Somebody has to warn the Three Musketeers about their resident spies. It's the right thing to do.

And I may not be a full superhero, but I still do the right thing.

Besides, I know where they're going to be anyways.

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Dum...dum...dummmmm. The plot thickens! Who can Robin trust? Loyalties will be tested. Have you figured it out yet? Review if you think you know what happens next! They fuel my copy-and-pasting energy! (Yes, I do have this whole story already written out. But lack of enthusiasm from you guys=lack from me).

*youwishyouwerethiscool


	15. Chapter 15

So you guys are going to love this chapter. All you young Robin fans prepare to laugh as we do a little flashback.

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15

As I wait, I can't help but think. Brainwashing. Isn't that what Sharp said? The supers of these sidekicks whose butts I'm about to save, their mentors have all been brainwashed. According to Batman they were being faked, but if they have Raina on their side, brainwashing makes much more sense.

And that is some seriously bad news. These guys are like the top dogs in the Justice League hierarchy. Superman by himself would be a crazy difficult problem to solve. But add Aquaman and Green Arrow to the mix and your just asking for it. And I can't forget all the other superheroes and villains that this mysterious evildoer has captured. Assuming they're all brainwashed as well...I'm pretty much already dead.

Batman said he was able to contact me only for a short time before they would've found him. So I'm under the assumption that he's been captured and probably brainwashed too. Add him to the list of "them" in this game of me versus them.

I try to think about Batman's coded message, but I can't concentrate. My mind keeps drifting to Batman. He's been my only family for so long. But not just that, he's been my teacher, my super, and pretty much my only friend. Sure, I had all those posers at school who were my "friends" because I was smart, and rich, and handsome. But Bruce gets me. Alfred is there for me too, but he's more there as a father for Bruce. So, in a way, he's like a surrogate grandfather for me.

But I hadn't always wanted to stay with them. I remember a time when I had been angry and hurt and confused. About five years ago.

I was about eight years old.

Batman had taken me from the circus and into his home. To this day, I don't know exactly why. I never asked him. I did get the courage up to ask Alfred however. He got a sad look in his eyes and said simply that Bruce saw himself in me. That makes me wonder what happened to his parents.

But at that time, I wasn't grateful. I was angry at everything and everyone. I remember those days. I was starting down a dark path.

I wasn't about to stay in a fancy mansion and let my family's killer go free. I wanted my revenge. Well, the most settling sort of revenge an eight-year-old could get. I'm not really sure what I would have done.

But I still felt I had to do something.

So I planned my escape.

Bruce Wayne is probably one of the richest people in the world. He was also voted most eligible bachelor and handsomest man alive. So needless to say he had better things to do than hang out with a little kid.

Also, being an influential international figurehead for both politics and peace, he created as many enemies as he did allies. His house featured all the newest security systems and technology. Not only was it difficult to get in, it was near impossible to get out.

Like that was going to stop me.

I spent my free time (of which I had an excess of) studying the grounds and identifying any type of surveillance I could see. I may have been young, but I had traveled all around the world with Haley's Circus. I had passed through all types of security checkpoints on my way in and out of countries. I thought I knew what I was doing.

Bruce told me one day that he would be gone at an awards dinner later that night. Then, when I was sitting eating popcorn on the couch, careful to make sure lots of the kernels made their way between the cushions, Alfred told me that he had to run to help out a friend (I found out later that he had actually gone to the Bat-cave to help out the Bat).

"Are you sure you'll be okay here by yourself?" he had asked me.

I smiled at him. "I'm sure I'll be fine." Especially because tonight would be the day I made my escape.

I remember that day like it was yesterday...

I sat, still watching TV. A crime drama where the detective seems crazy but he always solves the case in the end. It's one of those "who dunnit" shows that I can figure out a few seconds into it (they put all those super obvious clues into the program to draw the general public away from the actual committer of the crime).

The phone rings. I let it go to the answering machine.

"Master Richard? Please pick up the phone!" That's Alfred. He insists on calling me by my full name.

Grumbling, I lean over and push the answer button on the phone beside me. "Hello? You have reached the home of the international crime lord Bruce Wayne. You cannot reach him right now because he's probably too busy making out with your girlfriend or something—"

"Master Richard, please stop." I can hear Alfred's tired voice on the other end. He sounds echoey, like he's in a tunnel.

"What is it?"

"Master Wayne just wanted to check in on you."

I curl my lip. "Why didn't he call then?"

"He was afraid you wouldn't pick up if you heard him on the other end."

Well, he's right about that. "Whatever."

"Hold on for a moment," there's a few beeps and a click. Then I hear Bruce's voice. "Dick?"

I roll my eyes. "What?"

"Are you doing okay?" Theres a thumping sound and he grunts.

I frown. "I am fine. Are you okay?"

"Fine." He voice sounds strained. Then there's another thump and the sound of something heavy hitting the ground.

"Really? Because it sounds like someone just passed out."

"These awards ceremonies—" I hear some more voices shouting in the background. "—they throw some wild after parties."

"Okay then." I don't really care what Bruce Wayne does at his after parties. "So when are you getting home?"

"Later."

Okay, I may be eight, but I'm not stupid. "I'm talking time frame...?"

"Just...later."

I pause. "Alright...is that all?"

"Yeah." He sighs. Then I hear another grunt and something heavy slams into something else. "Look, I know you don't like living with me. When I get home, I see if I can arrange to put you some place else."

Oh. "Like where?"

"A boys' home, if you'd like. Or a boarding school that you could live at until you're eighteen. I would pay your way through, of course."

"Uh, okay." I've never gone to a formal school before. My mom and dad taught me in our caravan. Just thinking about them makes my eyes grow hot and my throat swell. And an orphanage...when my parents first died, there was no room for me in any of the orphanages in Gotham. So my social worker had made me spend months in Gotham's Juvenile Detention Center. It was a madhouse. That place still haunts me. I remember what it did to me. I learned how to fight and how to use my acrobatics to win. I was going down a dark road. By the time Bruce got to me, I was a mass of black and blue with trust issues. But it toughened me up. Or drove me insane. Either way, I fit into Gotham now.

"You'll live a nice normal life. I'll make sure of that."

Normal? I don't know the meaning of normal. My whole life has been traveling the world, performing in front of thousands, staring death in the face as I flip threw the air. I think about having a desk job or driving in five o'clock traffic with hundreds of other commuters. No, I can't do that.

"Or you could even join another circus again eventually."

Heck no. There's is no way on the face of this blessed earth I would ever do that.

"Well..." When I don't say anything, he sighs again. There's the sound of a car's tires squealing on the road. "We'll talk about it when I get home."

"'Kay."

There's a click.

I sit back on the couch. The detective on TV has solved the case. What do you know, I was right. Whoopee.

I'm not going to sit here and wait for Bruce to get home so we can discuss my future. I've got a man to hunt down.

His name: Tony Zucco. Age: 54. Height: 6' 2". Weight: 190 lbs. Description: described as having short gray hair, large chin that juts out, one eye blue, the other brown. Dresses finely. Current location: Unknown, but most likely in Gotham City's ghetto sections near the power factory. Crime: Tried to exhort money from the circus manager at Haley's Circus (my dad, at the time). Wanted for the deaths of John and Mary Grayson.

That's all I've got on him. It's in the police records. Most of the description was mine however. The police wrote down everything I said, but I could tell they didn't really believe me. One even went as far as to pat me in the back and say, "It was probably just an accident, kid."

But I know it wasn't just an accident. I was there. I saw Zucco surround my family along with a bunch of his mob crew and ask for money so that they could "protect us". My father blatantly refused. A little bit of a scuffle started and my father took one of the guys out. But Zucco still had us surrounded. He threatened my father again, but just then, sirens could be heard outside. My mother had called the police while my father had distracted them.

Zucco and his crew split. I remember helping my father stand as we watched them run. He looked at me and then spat at my father, "You'll be sorry!"

But it ended up with me being the sorry one. Sorry I hadn't tackled him, held on to him so when the police showed up, they could nab him. Sorry I hadn't fought back. Sorry I hadn't done anything besides just standing there and watching him run by.

Now he's the one who's going to be sorry.

I go upstairs into my room. I have to, otherwise Bruce will get suspicious. I planned it out, making a routine for myself so that he'll think he can predict all my movements. I know from listening and from what Alfred told me, that as soon as I shut my bedroom door for the night, all security systems within the house go online. They only are shut off when Bruce gets home and swipes his master key. Or Alfred.

I could have nabbed one of those key cards, but then I would have to get through a bunch of pass codes and voice recognition panels before I could even use it (back then, I didn't know how to get around that sort of thing).

So instead, I just have to get around his security system.

My bedroom door's the easy part. Doesn't even lock. Inside or outside. That bothered me at the time even if Alfred and Bruce both knock and don't enter unless they are given permission.

I pack my things. Some bread that I was able to sneak out of the kitchens, a spare blanket, three changes of clothes, and a photo of my parents. All shoved in a Batman backpack. (Ironic, I know, considering whose house I was in, but pretty much everyone had those backpacks back then so it's no surprise that Bruce Wayne would too). I also put my shoes into the backpack since in order to do what I was about do, it would be easier with bare feet. I pull on some sweatpants and a sweatshirt and tighten my backpack onto my back so it won't slide off if I were, to say, flip upside down or something.

I open my door slowly, making sure it won't creak. I move my feet carefully, wincing as the wooden floor whines under the ornamental carpet.

The upstairs hallway is clear. It's not until you get to the steps that the problems start.

I take a deep breath as I look at the stairs. Pressure panels lie underneath the carpet that drapes the steps. An alarm is set to go off with the first sign of added weight.

I grab the handrail and pull myself up. I make sure my feet are firmly gripping the rail before I straighten up. I'm lucky this rail has a somewhat gentle slope. Placing my feet carefully, I move down the rail, hands extended, walking straight. I had a friend back at the circus who taught me how to walk a tightrope since it wasn't really part of my act. It's actually pretty fun and since I don't have any fear of heights, I'm pretty good at it, if I do say so myself.

I get to the bottom of the stairs and balance on the end of the railing. I look up at the huge ostentatious chandelier that hangs from the ceiling. It has fake candles twisting upwards in twelve arms. This is where the fun begins.

I easily jump up high enough to grab one of the chandelier's arms. The whole thing sways and the ceiling groans under my weight.

I had figured the chandelier was heavy enough as it was that whoever installed it would have taken extra precautions to make sure it was secured properly. But that doesn't stop the thought of, Please don't break, from rushing through my head.

I swing my legs, gathering momentum for the dismount. Above the door, there's a window that has a lintel just big enough for someone to grab onto. I'm pretty used to swinging through the air and catching small poles, so this is a piece of cake.

I flip once to cover extra distance. Straightening out, I grab hold of the ledge, just catching hold of it with my fingertips. I hold on for dear life as my body tries to continue it's forward motion and I crash into the wall.

I groan audibly. That sucked. Stretching out, I use my toes to grab the door knob. Just one deadlock, simple to unlock. With a click, I swing the door open. Luckily, it opens out wards instead of inwards. Makes this just that more simple.

I release the lintel and let myself drop, quickly grabbing the doorframe. Swinging my body once more, I flip out onto the welcome mat. Adjusting my backpack, I slip on my shoes and close the door behind me. I can't lock it, but I don't really care. They'll realize I'm gone soon enough.

I run across Wayne Manor's extensive grounds towards the front gate. I can't help but look back one last time. I smirk. So much for the most secure place on the planet. "Try to catch me now, Brucey." I brush off my shoulders and cackle before turning...

...and smacking right into a broad chest.

"What—?" I stumble back, barely keeping my feet. It feels like I just ran into a brick wall.

"You were saying?"

"M-Mister Wayne..." I stand there in shock. Where the heck did he come from?

Bruce Wayne eyes my backpack and looks back at the house. He sighs. "So...I saw what you did."

"What I...?"

"I've got security cameras up, you know."

I feel my blood run cold.

"And you think just because you avoided all the little panels I hid, I wouldn't put a silent alarm up to alert me if the front door is opened?" Bruce Wayne raises an eyebrow at me. He sticks his hands in his pockets with a bored expression on his face, the poster boy of calm and collected.

I'm not sure what to say.

"Honestly, here I thought you were smart."

I blink. "Excuse me?"

"Where exactly were you going to go?" Bruce gives me a look that's half curiosity, half amusement.

I look away from him. "I was...I was going to find the man who killed my family."

Bruce's smile drops. He looks angry now. "And let me guess. You were going to find him and make him pay."

I glare at the floor. "Yes." Here it comes. He'll laugh and tell me a little kid like myself would have no chance.

Bruce huffs. "Killing him will not take away your anger. And it will not bring your parents back."

Now it's my turn to frown. "Kill him? Whoa, who said anything about that?" I've seen enough of that to last me a life time. And I'm pretty sure if I ever went that far, there would be no coming back.

Bruce is surprised. "What? That's not what you meant?"

"No! Of course not!" I snort.

"But you want to make him pay—"

"I want him to get the justice he deserves," I say. "And that means watching him rot away in prison for the rest of his life."

"Oh." Bruce studies me seemingly in a new light. "But don't you think the police could do that?"

"Please. For the amount of time I've been in Gotham, even I can pick up on the fact that the police are totally incompetent here."

Bruce doesn't disagree. He's stares at me hard. I look back defiantly. He's the first to blink. "Okay. I know it's hard on you...about what happened to your parents, Dick. Trust me I know." He says, a dark expression shadowing his face. "But you don't have to take the law into your own hands."

"Why not?" I say. "I want to make sure he never hurts another family again. I want to make sure people are safe. That justice is served."

Bruce eyes me keenly. "Dick..."

"And you're stupid if you think that you can stop me." I fake right and run left, pushing off the ground to somersault over the bushes.

In hindsight, maybe I shouldn't have called him stupid.

I'm halfway down the road before I hear something coming at me, whooshing through the air. I turn just in time to see a small, black bat-shaped throwing star smack me in the temple and I hit the floor unconscious.

When I wake up, I'm in a cave than smells strongly of guano. I wince and look around, resisting the urge to hold my nose. It's dark in here. I can hear the sound of water dripping from the stalactites hanging from the ceiling. Where am I?

Suddenly, there's the sound of rock scraping against rock and and engine revving. I flip to my feet, instantly alert. Being trapped in a dark, smelly cave with no memory of how I got there is not good.

A door in the cave wall farthest from me opens up. I hear the sound of rushing water and a sleek, black car rolls in. It's engine purrs and I feel my mouth fall open. No freaking way.

Everyone in Gotham knows Batman. That's the one thing about the circus touring all these cities in America. We get to see Star City, Gotham City, Metropolis, Happy Harbor, and even some of the superheroes that accompany them. Personally, Superman had always been my favorite. All those powers plus he's the figure head for the Justice League (Batman had actually been the one to come up with idea of the Justice League but everyone automatically assumed it was the big blue boyscout who had). I'm afraid after living with Batman with all these years, I've become just a tad biased on my Superman opinion.

As the car pulls into the cave, it startles some of the bats on the ceiling, and they make a racket, screeching and flying through the open door. I duck down as their leathery wings slap my head and face.

By the time I've straightened, the car has gone silent and there's a large, opposing figure standing in front of me.

I screech something out in Romani and jump backwards. The figure doesn't move.

"Holy...you're Batman!"

"And you're observant," the Dark Knight growls.

He towers over me (though that's not too shocking since I'm short even for an eight year old). His cape wraps around him making him look like a huge black pillar. His Batman cowl is pulled up over his head, making his chin the only sign that there's a man in there at all.

I'm shaking, I know it. Batman scares Gotham villains. I think I'm justified. "I got kidnapped...by Batman?"

"I didn't kidnap you, Dick." His voice is harsh and emotionless. It makes me shiver. "I just took you home."

"Right..." I've heard people on the news talk about only a crazy person could dress up like a giant Bat and scare people while running around stopping crime, cap billowing out behind him. I know from news conferences that I've been forced to attend so far, that Bruce supports him. Alfred says it's because of his past. That "Master Bruce" would do anything to get Gotham's streets clean.

The Batman walks past me, his footsteps making hardly any sound against the metal platform that suspends us over the stalagmites below. He taps something I can't see, and suddenly the wall lights up as a huge computer monitor powers on.

A little peeved at being ignored, I say, "Um, any reason I'm seeing your Fortress of Solitude?"

Batman stops his incessant typing. For a few minutes, I don't think he's going to respond. I look over the cave. On a second look, I see there's a lot of stuff in here. A helicopter, a plane, a boat, a tank, and, of course, his car. Also, what looks like a trophy case with various pieces of blown up weapons. Another wall is full of all his gadgets.

"It's the Bat-cave."

I spin back around. "Huh?"

"Superman has a Fortress of Solitude. This is a Bat-cave." Batman swivels around his his chair and glares at me. A glare that makes grown villains wet themselves. But I refuse to be cowed. I stop trembling and glare back. I've seen scarier things than this bat psycho in just my short life.

Then something so bizarre happens. Something so rare, that I'm probably the only person ever to witness it. The Batman smiles.

"You're brave, Dick," he says, and he almost sounds proud. "Do you remember what you talked about with Bruce?"

I ignore the fact that Batman and Bruce are on first name basis. "Yeah." Justice and me stupidly trying to get some for my parents.

"And do you stand by it?"

I stare back at him, unwavering. "Yes."

"No matter what, you won't ever suddenly decide that death and revenge is the answer?"

"Of course." I'm irritated. Didn't I just have this conversation?

"Then, my boy, I think we'll get along famously."

I frown. Batman's voice sounds suddenly much different. It's one I recognize...

I stare in amazement and shock as Batman pulls off his black cowl to reveal the handsome features of my guardian, Bruce Wayne.

"Hello, Richard. How would you like to be my partner?"

I shake my head out of my reverie. And that's how I got introduced to the wonderful world of Batman and superheroing. Still sort of a painful subject.

I crouch low as I hear voices approaching. Speedy and Supergirl. Talking loudly. Not at all like they're trying to sneak up on someone.

I crack my fingers and sigh. What would they do without me?

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Love, love, love that chapter! I'm too cool. But you guys might get close if you...review more!

*youwishyouwerethiscool


	16. Chapter 16

And back to the action as Robin finally confronts Hunter and Raina and all is revealed. Or is it...?

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16

I know I have to be careful. After all, they think I'm a traitor. Well, maybe if I hadn't released their prisoner, left Kaldur up on a tightrope, and stolen their car, they might be a little less chilly.

They're in costume. Except for those real traitors, Hunter and Raina. Ridiculous. I can't believe they let them tag along. I wonder what they think happened to Kitrina. Maybe Raina erased her from their minds.

I crouch on top of a crate and think. How am I suppose to deal with a telepath? Rule Number 985 is that all super powered people have weaknesses. Seeing how the team doesn't know of my presence up here, I'm guessing that Raina has to concentrate on reading minds before she is able to. But, she's adept at mind delving—that is getting into other people's subconsciousness—when she is concentrating.

I remember back at Gotham Central where I said she was limited by touch. How stupid. And then Hunter had been all, "Wow, that's right!" I practically had handed them a cover story on a silver plate. And all because of my idiotic bragging. Batman will give me an hour long lecture if he ever finds out. (Which makes another thought pop into my head. I was totally wrong about Kitrina, or Cat, at the the time. She didn't have powers really at all. Fantastic. Throw in one pretty girl and I'm suddenly off my game. Good show, Grayson).

But back to taking her out. I could just hit her upside the head with a throwing star. Shouldn't be too difficult. But I think that might be a more permanent solution that what I'm looking for.

So my other option is to pop up and hope they hear me out before I get mind-wiped, teleported away, shot full of arrows, drilled with laser beams, or drowned by water blades.

I shake my head. No, I can't do that until I take out Raina. She's the most dangerous one there right now. Though she may not be able to read my mind, she could still throw me off. No, she goes down first, then I explain myself, hopefully while successfully holding off Hunter.

I chew my lip. What are her weaknesses? She's not a fighter, for one. Could barely run five minutes straight. Not talkative, though I don't think that's a weakness. She's a teenage girl...

Suddenly, a thought occurs to me. She's a teenage girl with a high school education. Though she may be able to read minds, she's limited in similar ways to hearing someone speak. Say...a foreign language?

I crouch down and start to move.

"Seriously, he's suppose to be here," Roy says, irritation evident in his voice.

"Well, Robin has already proven himself to be quite smart. Perhaps we have been fooled?" Kaldur suggests.

"No way. My tracker cut out right at this location. My money's on he didn't even notice the tracker until too late."

Kara doesn't sound so sure. "Aqualad, you are sure you put the tracker under the dash?"

"Yes, I am sure. He was sitting in the back. There is very little chance he would have noticed."

These guys didn't trust me from the start? Harsh.

This next part is going to involve some pretty tricky thinking. Literally. English wasn't my first language, Romani was. Here's betting a sixteen-year-old girl doesn't know how to understand it.

Language teachers will often say that the way you know you learned a language is if you start thinking in that language. English was ridiculously hard to learn. All those prefixes that made words into different words, or into words with opposite meanings, and even some could stand alone as their own word and mean something totally different. Not to mention, all those rhymes that are suppose to help with spelling? Not helpful. "I" before "e" except after "c". Oh, unless your spelling something like chief. Isn't that after "c"? "E" before "i" except after "y"? Isn't that just a contradiction of the other one?

But Bruce said that he would learn Romani if I made the effort with English. Little did I know, Bruce already had an extensive background in several languages. And little did he know, I already knew a few things in English. Just because I can speak it, doesn't mean I want to.

Hunter looks nervous. "This place is so creepy. There's a reason it's an unsaid rule in Gotham to avoid the docks."

Oh, look at him being all chummy and sympathetic. I swear, I'm going to punch his lying face in!

I stand and start to descend.

"Let's double back," Kara suggests. "Maybe we missed—"

"Someone?"

No, that wasn't me. I'm frozen in shock, staring at Raven who just glided out of the shadows.

"Who the heck are you?" Roy says.

Raven glares at them. And then, surprisingly, she turns to Raina. "Stop trying to read me."

I can see Raina's creepy eyes widen from my perch. The shadows around her grow and Raina lets out a little shriek, before collapsing backwards.

Immediately, the Junior Justice League is on guard.

"Hey!"

"What the heck?"

"Who are you?"

Hunter surprises me the most though. He seems dumbstruck for a moment, seeing his cousin passed out on the ground. Then he turns to Raven with a cold, professional manner that I was not expecting.

"Rachel Roth," he says in an eerie voice. "You're one of the ones we were looking for."

"Hunter, you know this girl?" Kaldur asks.

Hunter ignores him. "Where is Robin?"

"Heck if I'm going to tell you." Raven's cape flares up around her like a gentle breeze has started and is threatening to pick up into a gust.

Hunter's pale eyes narrow and all at once, his form blurs. He's suddenly in multiple places at once. I frown. Super speed? No...this is different.

Suddenly Raven stumbles and I see Hunter's image flicker behind her for just a second before appearing a few feet away and then to the left and then farther and then closer...

He's teleporting. His power is a lot stronger than I thought it was. I'm almost glad Raven appeared to stop me from confronting them head on. I'm sure that even if my plan again Raina worked, I would have been caught off guard by Hunter.

Raven stumbles again before dropping to a knee. She's getting pretty beat up. Hunter's coming at her so fast, she can't even react.

The sidekicks aren't about to let this slide.

"Hunter, what the heck, dude?"

"Stop! You don't have to hurt her!"

"We surely can talk about this calmly."

They're all trying to reason with him. I snort. Good luck with that. I study Hunter's movement for a few more seconds before drawing one of my throwing disks.

There. Right as Hunter appears behind her to punch Raven again, I throw it.

It smacks Hunter right in the head, sending him back onto his butt. Everyone looks shocked, not sure what just happened.

I let out my signature cackle. I see Kara look up to where she heard it. "Robin?"

I jump off the crate I'm on top of and flip, landing softly on my feet. "What gave it away?"

Raven looks up at me, anger evident on her face through her pain. "Took you...long enough..."

"Ugh! There you are!" Hunter scrambles to his feet, clutching his forehead which is bleeding from where I hit him. Hmm, he's tougher than I thought. Most guys get knocked out with that sort of hit.

I do a little mock stage bow. "Yes, you found me."

"Robin?" Kaldur sounds angry and confused. "What—?"

"Guys, look, you can't trust them," I point at Hunter who has made his way over to his cousin. "They're spies. Working for the people who kidnapped everyone!"

Roy has an incredulous look on his face. "No, that's not..."

"Think about it! Batman left me a message at the school! We all forgot about it up until this point! That's because of Raina! She's not as weak as she was pretending to be." I'm trying to remember everything I learned and tell it convincingly before Raina wakes up or Hunter gets back up. "And neither is Hunter! You saw what he just did."

I see something shift behind Kaldur's eyes. "There...have been some unexplained gaps in my memory lately."

Kara frowns. She looks at Hunter. "Is it true?"

Hunter rolls his eyes. "If I were a liar, don't you think I would lie about the answer to that question? But yeah." He says it so casually, like it's an old fact that doesn't really matter.

He grins over at me. "So Rob, figured it out, did yah? Ah well, didn't expect it to last much longer anyways." He looks at me, suddenly very serious. "But we are not the bad guys."

I scoff. "But you kidnapped every super in the Justice League!"

"Well, that wasn't us specifically, but yeah, I guess so." He shrugs. "You'll soon learn of our purpose. We are doing something great! Something that will change the world forever. And just to prove to you, we mean no harm, we leave you with a little parting gift. Your identity is the most precious thing to you, correct?"

My eyes narrow.

"Ooh, look, that's almost a Bat-glare, very impressive. But seriously, it's our gift to you. Raina saw how you slipped up a few times. Even told them your whole name for god's sake! Consider it an early birthday present." Hunter's grin widens.

"Hang on, you're not going anywhere." I start towards him. "Where are Batman and the others?"

Hunter shakes his head, still grinning, not at all concerned. "I guess you'll have to figure that out for yourself, Boy Wonder." He reaches down, touches Raina's shoulder and disappears, a little breeze as the air settles being the only sign they were ever there.

I mutter in Romani under my breath. "Fabulous."

Raven lets out a little groan. "Ooh..."

I turn to her and kneel down. "Are you alright?"

"Ugh, I thought you would be here already. I didn't know it would take you to watch me getting used as a punching bag before you would interfere."

"Why did you come back?" I say. "You're suppose to be meeting with Sharp soon."

Raven shot me a glare. "Like you are? Please, I knew you were going to double back here. It was obvious. You're such a moron."

I stand up, shaking my head. "But why did you come back?"

Raven glares at me from under her hood before turning to the floor. "Unfinished business."

Before I can make her clarify herself, Roy interrupts.

"So, what the heck just happened?" He sounds angry and his voice comes out almost nasally. He's still got his bow out with an arrow on the string, though he isn't aiming at me. Yet.

Kaldur nods. "I believe you owe us an explanation, Robin."

I sigh. I tell them the whole story, everything from my dream to our forgotten memories.

Kara states, "Unbelievable."

Roy says, "No way. That chick was inside my head?"

Kaldur gives Roy a disapproving look. "Speedy, control yourself please. If what you're saying is true, then we have been taken as fools."

I reach up and scratch at my mask. Suddenly, something occurs to me. I think back to what Hunter said. "Um...do you guys remember the Bat-cave?"

"The Bat-cave?" Kaldur clutches at his head. His eyes glow with his mystic power for a moment before they fade and he shakes his head. "No. I'm afraid it is all too hazy. We discussed...going to Gotham Central?"

"Yeah...and clubs?" Kara looks at Roy who only shrugs.

I turn away and stare at the ceiling. They don't remember. Back at the Bat-cave, I gave away my real name along with Batman's. I feel an unexpected sense of relief.

"I don't even remember what the Cave looks like," Roy says ruefully.

This time, I sigh out loud. They don't remember the Cave, my identity, Batman's...now Bruce won't kill me.

Raven is watching us, confused. "The Batman...has a Bat-cave?"

I sigh again. Bruce and his crazy obsession. "Yes."

Kara looks over at Raven. "Um, no offense, but who are you?"

The other girl tugs at her hood. "Raven."

I start to say something but Roy cuts me off. His arrow is now pointed right between my eyes. "Hold up. Why in the heck did you run off with Sharp, steal the car, and ditch us like that?"

"Batman contacted me," I say. "He told me he was the one who sent Sharp to find us. And he warned me that your supers would contact you and tell you how I was a traitor. When really it was Raina and Hunter we couldn't trust."

Roy lowers his bow slightly. "Green Arrow's usually full of it anyways."

"But...it sounded so much like him..." Kara bites her lip.

"My King..." Kaldur sounds hurt and confused. That's a surprise. Usually he's the clear, levelheaded one. After all, he's suppose to be the oldest.

I bring up my holo-screen on my glove. I type as I try to ignore the others who are processing what I told them. It is a lot to bear. Batman...Alfred...all the other heroes. I hope they're okay.

I close my eyes, just for a second. I can imagine myself someplace else. At school with my friends. At home, in the mansion. Or even in the Bat-cave. With someone else guiding me, telling me what to do. How am I suppose to do this alone? I just can't stand this anymore. I just wish...I just wish...

"Robin?"

I glance over and see Raven watching me. "You okay?"

The other three stop their conversation to look over at me.

I blink. Don't show weakness. Rule 55. "Of course." I force a believable smile. Feeling irritated with Ravin, I glance at her and smirk. "Are you okay?"

Raven glares at me before growling, "Fine, whatever. God, I was just asking."

I feel sort of bad for dissing Raven. But she was asking for it.

I continue typing, my fingers a blur on my keyboard.

"So...this message we forgot." Roy says, finally putting his arrows away. "What was it?"

I chew my lip. "It was a pretty complex sequence. Lights flashing at different intervals with the different colors at the same time." I show them what I was typing on my holo-screen. The pattern I programmed flashes across. "I haven't really had the chance to look it over yet."

Kaldur stares at the colors with a serious look on his face. "I do not know. It seems random."

"No. There's a pattern." Math was always my best subject at school. It was simply recognizing patterns after all. I stared at the screen, muttering to myself. Suddenly, an idea clicks in my head. "Does anyone have a piece of paper and a pencil?"

"What, you don't have that in your utility belt?" Roy sneers, but I ignore him.

Supergirl hands it to me. I frown, seeing it's the same piece of paper she wrote down Superman's last message on. And a pen.

Flipping the paper over, I begin to carefully write out the message. "The colors stand for anagrams and the flashing is morse code. These letters unscrambled and then put in the order of the actual rainbow colors..." I finish writing the last of the message and frown. "Wait...what?"

It's a bunch of random letters.

"Oh wow. I bow down to your skill, great and mighty Robin," Roy says mirthlessly.

I squint at the screen. I was sure I remembered the pattern correctly.

Kara shakes her head. "It's like it's another language or something."

My eyes widen. "Of course!" Batman wanted me specifically to get this message after all. So far, all of his clues had been geared directly towards me. So...

I unscramble the letters so they spell out words in my native tongue, Romani. I guess my language did come in handy, even if I didn't use it with Raina (though I'll have to remember that for next time I see her). It takes me some time to translate from Romani to English. I'm not sure if I got some of the words a hundred percent right, but at least it makes sense. Sort of.

The others stare over my shoulder at the piece of paper on my hands. Raven snorts. "Well, that's helpful."

THE BLUE-EYED ONES ARE SPIES. THE MOMENT OF ANAGNORISIS IS PIERCING BUT BE BRAVE, EVEN IF PERIPETEIA FOGS THE PATH AHEAD.

I don't say anything, but I can't help but agree with her. All the message has done is confirm what I already know. And what I had guessed.

"'The blue-eyed ones are spies,'" Kaldur reads. "Well. Then that confirms it. Hunter and Raina."

Roy nods. "But what about the second part? 'Anagnorisis'? 'Peripeteia'? What does that mean?"

I frown for a second before coming to a decision. Raina got into their heads too easily before. And besides, Rule 27: your best tool is the element of surprise. "No idea," I lie easily. "Bet is has something to do with the villains we're dealing with though. This weird fog keeps popping up."

Kara nods enthusiastically. "Yeah. Superman mentioned fog."

"And so did Batman," I say. I feel them looking at me curiously. Oh yeah, I forgot. They don't remember that little part anymore.

"Fog...maybe it has something to do with the supers' disappearances," Roy says.

I almost smack him. "No, duh! What gave it away?"

Kaldur interrupts us. "Perhaps the fog is some type of gas. It knocks them out."

"Huge rolling clouds of fog are not usually the best kind of gas if you want someone to pass out without a fight," I point out. "Then wouldn't the heroes have just avoided it or something?" I already know that Batman has a gas mask on his utility belt. And Superman...well, he's Superman. He would have blown it away with one mighty breath or something.

Suddenly, Raven speaks up. "Maybe it's a manifestation of someone's powers."

We all look at her.

"What?" she says, getting defensive. "Some powers do that."

"Do yours?" Kara asks. She probably didn't mean for it to come out all snappish though.

Raven's eyes narrow under her hood. "My powers tend of take the form of a raven's shadow. But that takes a lot of power to manage."

I remember the security footage from the mansion. Bruce standing at his office window with the huge cloud of fog rolling over the hill towards him. "So whomever we're dealing with is pretty powerful."

"Maybe..." Raven stares at me hard. "You know what we should do. We have to find Sharp and the others. With their help, I'm sure we can figure this out."

"No!" I say, my voice cutting through the silent warehouse piercingly. "Absolutely not."

The others look at me, surprised.

"The others...you speak of the villain sidekicks?" Kaldur says slowly.

"Yeah. And Cat. Remember her?" I sigh. Cat. Oh, haha, that sure was clever.

"No."

That surprises me. "You don't?" Sheesh, at this point, I'm glad these guys still remember me at all. Raina really screwed with their heads. "Well, never mind, it's not important. What is important," I turn to Raven, "is we don't go anywhere near where Sharp wanted us to go."

"What, why? Sharp got us this far. Not to mention, he rescued me from getting captured! He led me to Engima and Catgirl and he saved you!"

"Yeah," I say, without much conviction. "But that doesn't matter. They're not going to be there."

"And how do you know."

I pull up my holo-screen again. "Because I already checked. Their trackers disappeared."

Everyone stares at me screen. It shows the three members of the Junior Justice League as three blue dots, I'm the red dot, and Raven is a yellow dot.

"You're tracking us?" Roy says.

"More like, keeping track of you," I say, rolling my eyes. I had put the tracker on Sharp awhile back. Raven, Engima, and Catgirl had all been when we said our good-byes. And the Musketeers had all been earlier, of course. "And Catgirl, Engima, and Sharp all disappeared, similar to how Kid Flash did." I give my fellow sidekicks a significant look. Please tell me they at least remember that.

Kaldur looks serious, so I guess so. "Where were they last?"

I rewind my tracker application. "All of them were still pretty far way from the meeting spot. They start to disappear one by one." We watch as Enigma's light blinks out, then Catgirl's. Sharp's is the last to go. "Just like Wally and Zatanna."

Kara presses a hand to her mouth. "So that's it. We're done."

"Sharp said he knew where our mentors were," Kaldur says solemnly.

I roll my eyes. "Please. He probably just said that to get us to trust him." I glance at Raven. "Did he ever say anything to you?"

Raven tugs at her hood. "No. But, I don't really have a mentor who's missing."

The others exchange looks in confusion but I nod. Raven is starting to make sense to me. "You have a questionable past or difficult family relations, don't you? So the Justice League wouldn't take you on. That's why you have 'unfinished business' with them," I thrust my thumb to the Justice Juniors.

Raven blinks. "How'd did you figure it out?" Not a hint of sarcasm. So I was right.

I shrug. "World's Greatest Detectives's partner."

"You mean sidekick," Roy mumbles.

I glare at him but don't say anything.

"Enough," Kaldur says tiredly. He looks at Raven. "I am sorry for any trouble the League has given you in the past. But we are not the League and cannot speak for them. And likewise, their actions do not speak for us."

Raven looks down, glaring a hole through the floor. "Whatever."

Kara looks glumly at my holo-screen. "I wish you could track the heroes on there. Didn't happen to put any trackers on them, did you?"

"After all, you seem to have everyone else covered," Roy adds.

I shake my head. "No. Batman wouldn't let me..." Meet them, I add in my head. I never even had the chance to try. It would have been funny though. I could tip of reporters to where they were all the time. Hilarious.

"Oh." Kara sighs. "I wish I had set up something with Superman. To you know, help me find him when we get separated."

"Batman put one of those on me," I find myself saying. "So he could keep track of me." I never could find it which makes me think it's either in my blood or implanted somewhere under my skin. I don't know which is creepier.

"I guess the paranoia runs in the family," Roy says.

I shrug. Yeah, pretty much.

"It is a shame it does not work the other way around," Kaldur says. We all stare at the ground in silence before I finally process what he just said.

"Aqualad! You're a genius!" I begin hurriedly typing.

"Thank you, my friend. But why?"

"The tracker in me is directly linked to a gadget that Batman always carries around with him. Always. If I can locate the wireless signal and make it so instead, I can track him, it'll lead us right to Batman and the rest of the League along with him!"

"You can do that?" Raven says.

"He can do that," Kaldur confirms.

Roy claps me on the back. "Well, it looks like you're finally good for something."

They gather around me excitedly, trying to follow the binary code that flashes across the screen.

"It's somewhere underground," I say, as my search narrows. "In...Star City!"

"Well, at least they're not off planet," Kara says, relieved.

I blink as my search finally comes to an end. "No way..."

"What, what is it?" Roy struggles to see over Kaldur 's broad shoulders.

"No wonder we couldn't find them," I say. "It's the last place we'd ever think to check."

"Where? Where are they keeping them?"

"One of the most highly guarded and most secure places on Earth." I zoom up on the building so they can all see its dome shape and golden structure.

"Oh," Kara mumbles.

"Yeah," I feel my jaw tighten. "They were right under our feet the whole time. They're being kept in the detention center underneath the Hall of Justice."

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OMG! Live, love, Robin! But yeah, so that happened. Now what will our heroes do? Tune in next time to find out...

*youwishyouwerethiscool


	17. Chapter 17

Thank you all who review! Increase in reviews means an increase in chapters. Some familiar faces are going to make a reappearance (finally). Do enjoy.

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17

Looking back, it was pretty obvious that the Hall of Justice was the only place they could be. It's best suited for holding people like Superman, Martian Manhunter, Wonder Woman and all the other heroes who have powers that would allow them to escape any normal cell. Usually, the League doesn't detain villains; it's part of their rocky relationship with the UN. But they do have cells for if ever one of their own goes rogue, or a villain arises that has to be...specially dealt with.

We're rocketing through Gotham, leaving the rain and gloom behind us as we make our way back to Star City. I'm on my R-cycle, gunning at full speed. Roy is on the back, facing behind me to check my six as we leave. Raven and Kara are flying in front of us, with Kara carrying Kaldur .

I zoom around a tight corner and Roy cries out as he struggles to stay on. But by facing backwards on a motorcycle meant for one, he's not giving himself a bunch of handhold options.

"Watch it!" He barks at me.

I grin. "Hold on!" I increase the speed now that I'm confident Kara and Raven can keep up.

Roy gives up trying to look like he's ready to take on any villain who tries to sneak up behind us, and instead focuses on just staying on my bike as we start to approach three hundred miles per hour. He's gripping the lip right under the seat, and his back slams right into mine every time we hit a bump or turn.

"I swear, you're doing this on purpose," Roy accuses.

"Aqualad offered," I point out, nodding to where Kaldur is being held up by the armpits by Kara. It's Roy's pride that's got him on the back of my cycle. He refused to be the one carried into battle by a girl. Even a Supergirl.

Roy grunts something at me that probably wasn't all that nice, but I pretend I didn't hear.

This is serious now. No joking, no arguing. The lives of everyone we care about...I care about, hang in the balance.

Through out this whole mission, I'm beginning to realize how similarly I was acting like Batman. No nonsense, doing whatever I could and dedicating every minute to the mission at hand. The only meal I've had in two days is some hotdogs and canned beans. I can't even remember the last time I laughed. And mean really laughed, like at an actual funny joke. I've been nothing but a little ball of stress and nerves since the start of this whole thing.

We reach the city limits and I stare ahead as the road opens out in front of us. What if this is what I am. What if I'm just like Batman? Sitting alone all night in the front of his computer and then forcing himself to smile and be encouraging in front of the masses. Is that who I am?

No. It can't be. Batman told me once that the reason he took me in was so that I would not turn out like him. And I guess, in his own weird, strange way, he thought letting me become Robin was the way for him to do that. Robin is who I am. But I'm still Dick Grayson.

I once asked Bruce if he ever got confused about who he was. He had looked at me, sighed and said, "You know, Dick, it happens all the time. When you wear a mask and nobody knows who you are, any inhibitions disappear and the laws of the night don't seem to apply to you." He had then rubbed his chin and said, "I am the protector of Gotham. It's what I'm suppose to do. I am also the protector of the innocent. And I'm alright with that. And even though Bruce Wayne is not Batman..." He raises an eyebrow. "Batman is Bruce Wayne."

I nod to myself now. I get it. I'm every part of Robin. What drives him, what makes him fight for the people who need protecting. And I'm Dick Grayson, who is there so Robin is there. I'm different than the Bat. I want to have a brighter outlook. I want to trust people. And I feel like I'm starting to do that. So far as Robin, anyways. I just have to work on Dick Grayson next.

Something whacks the back of my head and I glance over my shoulder at Roy. "What was that for, Speedy?"

Roy frowns. "Sorry. That was an accident." He gestures with his bow. "I was stretching."

I ignore him. "Don't you miss your mentor? We have to work together to pull this off and rescue them."

"I do. But Green Arrow and I...well, let's just say, last I saw him, we weren't on the best of terms."

I frown at that. Speedy was adopted by Oliver Queen similarly to how I was taken in by Bruce. But I was much younger and Bruce made an effort with me. Roy was fifteen and had been raised by Indians most his life (they were the ones who taught him to shoot, not Green Arrow like everyone assumes). He and Ollie constantly butted heads. Queen was rich, though not as much so as Bruce, and had taken Roy after seeing his skills with an arrow. But even though they had the same skills, Roy and Ollie couldn't have been more different. Or maybe they were too similar. Roy's abrasive, independent, proud personality clashed with Oliver's sarcastic, sometimes inappropriate, and similarly proud one. Neither would back out of an argument, so often arguments lasted months.

But of course, I can't tell Roy I know all that. I'm already labeled a creepy stalker by them because of my trackers. They don't really need to know just how much I know about them.

Roy seems to appreciate how I don't comment on that. "And I'm worried about Black Canary too."

Ah yes, Queen's longtime girlfriend. I never supposed Roy was closer with her than Ollie. Funny, they never mentioned that in any of the bat-files.

"And what about you," Roy says after a while. "Worried about the Bat?"

I grip the handles to my motorcycle. "Yeah." But he's the Batman. He's got to be okay.

"Is he like your dad, or something?" Roy asks suddenly. I stiffen. I then feel him move on the back of the bike like he's regretting saying anything. "Sorry, it's none of my business."

"No...it's okay, Speedy." Roy doesn't remember who I am, or who Batman is. I have to keep reminding myself that.

We drive another five miles before I speak again.

"Yeah."

"Huh?" Roy's back bumps into mine. "What?"

"Yeah, to answer your earlier question."

"Wha...oh." Suddenly, I hear Roy laughing behind me.

"What?" I say, frowning at his laughter and glancing at him over my shoulder.

"Nothing! It's just I—" more laughter "—can't imagine Batman having a little kid. Especially a brat like you!"

I crack a smile. I'm beginning to get that Roy isn't trying to be mean. It's just how he is. "Yeah, it's pretty weird if you think about it."

"So weird!" Roy chuckles again. "You know, I think you and KF would really get along."

"Wally? Why?"

"Dunno. He's sort of like you. Annoying, irritating. Sometimes likes to talk like he's the smartest person in the room when he's not being the dumbest. He's a good kid though." Roy sighs. "I hope he's okay too. Kid's like a little brother to me."

I think about when Kid Flash disappeared. "He was visiting family, right?"

"Yeah, probably his aunt. She would have been alone."

"Oh, because Flash was captured," I say, before realizing I just gave myself away. I shouldn't know Barry Allen is the Flash and that he and his wife, Iris, were Kid Flash's aunt and uncle.

Roy turns and smacks me in the head with his bow. "You do know all our IDs! Even the Leagues'! I told Kaldur..."

"Sorry," I say, because I'm not really sure what to say in this situation. "And don't hit me again. At this speed, the airbags wouldn't even work."

Roy freezes and grips the bottom of the seat again. "Just drive, Bird Boy."

I grin to myself. Maybe Roy's not as bad as I thought he was.

We get to Star City at three in the afternoon. The sun is high in the sky. I'm starting to get worried about getting some funky tan lines with my mask on in all this sunlight.

Raven looks just as uncomfortable. "Wow, it's bright here."

Kara puts her hands on her hips (and she probably doesn't even realize that she's doing the superhero pose). "Nothing looks out of the ordinary."

Tourists are roaming in and out of the Hall. They see us and take photos or stare.

I put the kickstand up on my bike. "At least they're acting a little more normal than earlier."

"I have been thinking about that," Kaldur says, sounding serious. I guess he was actually doing something when he was being carried through the air like a kitten. "I am wondering if perhaps...the fog might have affected the civilians as well as the Justice League."

"Wouldn't it have affected us too," Roy points out. He's rubbing his back and looks sore from the long trip.

"Maybe he's right," Kara says. "After all, everyone sure was calm after all the superheroes and villains were taken. Still no crimes. At least from what I've heard anyways."

I scratch my head. "Which could mean many things. Perhaps the fog was a chemical compound with a mild sedative in it. Or," I add quickly, seeing Raven open her mouth, "it could be a manifestation of powers like Raven said. Something that affects the mind."

Kaldur nods, going into team leader mode. "Okay, well, here's what I think we should do. We'll cover more area if we split up. Someone should stay up here and make sure the people stay away from the Hall. It may get dangerous here for civilians." He looks at Raven. "Raven, I believe it would be best if you did that. Out of all of us, you have the least experience in this field. It would only make sense."

Raven looks a little put off, but she nods. "Alright. Scaring people away is something I'm good at."

"Aqualad," Kara says, "someone should stay with Raven. To make sure people follow her orders. After all, they won't recognize her as a hero. No offense," she adds quickly, glancing at the other girl.

I see Raven's lip curl but she doesn't say anything.

I can almost see the gears turning in Aqualad's head. He needs someone to stay up here and do crowd control with Raven. Someone who police would recognize and who could easily handle the crowd if panic were to break out. As far as I can see, there's only one real option. No one knows who I am, so that rules me out. Roy's not exactly the most calming of figures. And we'll need Kara if thinks turn ugly when we're down in the Hall.

"I will stay," Kaldur says grimly. I can tell he doesn't want to. "We'll communicate through our earpieces. Speedy, stay with Robin at all times so that we can still communicate with him."

I grind my teeth. Another babysitter. "I don't—"

"No, Robin. You are a part of this team. We need to coordinate our plans if this is to be pulled off. You cannot disappear on us again."

"Fine."

Kaldur turns to Kara. "Are you sure you can go in alone?"

Kara flashes her most heroic smile. "Sure! Justice must be served, after all."

I roll my eyes even though nobody can see it under my mask. I pull up my holo-screen and show everyone an image of the detention center. "There are two wings that split off at the elevator. I can hack us in and get us down there. Heat readings show a lot of activity happening in the atrium and a regular guard patrolling the halls. I can't tell where the JL is being kept specifically, but I'm guessing in the cells that were specifically designed for them."

"They have cells specially designed for them?" Kara asks.

"Yeah, if someone went rogue or something. Like Superman's is kryptonite and lead and stuff. We should lay low until we know just where everyone is being kept. Otherwise, that makes this a hundred times harder."

"Agreed," Kaldur says. "Good luck, everyone. Keep in touch."

We nod and go our separate ways. As I run up the Hall's steps towards the glass doors, I hear Kaldur and Raven start to clear the area around us.

"EVERYONE! Please, this area is not safe! Please evacuate calmly!"

Kara flies through the door as Roy holds it open. I look around and see some families with cameras staring at us.

"You guys have to get out of here!" I call to them.

The people nod, taking it in their strange calm attitude and all head towards the door. One kid on her way out says, "Thanks, Speedy," to me as she leaves.

I exchange an annoyed look with Roy and lock the doors behind the last person. If Aqualad should find the need to come after us, he won't be stopped by a deadbolt. Rule 46, after all.

We enter through the hidden room and Roy punches in the code to allow the door to slide open. My brain processes details at a thousand beats per second as I look around the room.

There was obviously a struggle here. Some of the sidekicks that we haven't saw since the meeting a few days back must have gotten caught in the same tussle Zatanna did. There's scorch marks in the floor and the huge golden globe is dented on one side. The air smells like burnt rubber.

Keeping one hand close to my belt, we make our way to the computer screens. I run a USB port from my glove and plug it into a monitor. I easily hack into the security cameras. I put them all on a continuous loop. They won't be able to find us that way, at least.

We get into the elevator and Kara hits the detention center level. The elevator asks for verification. The other two glance at me and I grin as I override it. The elevator jolts to a start and we descend.

There's no music. Probably the only thing more irritating than elevator music is no music at all. Instead, we can hear our own heavy breathing. I can feel blood pounding in my ears.

We come to a halt with a jerk and the doors roll open. Roy and Kara swing out, looking both directions for any adversaries. We move farther down the hallway until it spits off, both paths running in opposite directions.

Kara glances at us. "Good luck."

Roy nods as I laugh. My laughter echoes off the confined space.

"Never had such a thing," I say.

Kara lifts off the ground and starts flying down the hallway to the left. Roy and I take the right.

The detention center is set up like a maze. I'm not completely sure if that was done on purpose to confuse any intruders, but it's a real pain the the butt. Even with the map, the two of us hit three dead ends before figuring out where we were suppose to turn.

Our main goal is the atrium. It's where the thermal scan detected the most heat signatures, and odds are it's where whoever is behind this whole thing is staked out.

Roy is tense, with his back taunt and arrow ready to fire every time we round a corner. Watching him is making me nervous. I notice that he's still using trick arrows, but I'm hoping he'll pull out the real deal if he has to. These people have already shown that they're not here to play.

Suddenly, a huge crash shakes the ground. Roy and I look at each other and I see that he's thinking the same thing I am.

Supergirl.

Well, there goes our element of surprise.

The alarms and lights start to flash and blare. Roy and I pick up the pace as a voice is heard overhead. It's the same female voice that I recognize from upstairs except louder.

"ATTENTION ALL GUARDS. AN INTRUSION HAS BEEN REPORTED IN SECTOR D8. PLEASE SEEK COVER. THE SUBJECTS HAVE BEEN LAUNCHED TO APPREHEND THE INTRUDER."

Subjects? What the heck does that mean?

"Well, that can't be good," Roy says, voicing exactly what I'm thinking.

Another boom shakes the building and plaster falls from the ceiling. I cough lightly and duck my head as a particularly large chunk falls free. "Do you know anything about League protocol involving subjects?"

"No, not that I would. GA doesn't tell me any of this..."

"Guard patrol," I say. We duck down an extra wing. I let myself melt into the shadows and find myself wishing my counterpart was not yellow and red. But despite Kid Condiment and his poor hiding skills, the guards march past us.

I give them a once over. None of them are wearing uniforms of any distinguishable organization, which I guess is a relief (I don't know what I would do if they were the League of Shadows). They all just seem like everyday thugs off the street. Piercings, raggedy everyday clothes. I see a few with gang insignias I recognize but they're not en masse. It almost seems like someone just scooped up the gutter in Gotham and made an army out of them.

I catch some of their conversation as they go by.

"Can't believe the boss is using them."

"Well, what'd yah expect? Got the ability, might as well put them to use."

"Still, I'd feel safer if Superman was in that Kryptonite cage. All them other crazies too."

"Hey, we've only got like five kids to take out. Once that's done, it's night-night Justice League." They all guffaw stupidly.

When the patrol passes, Speedy and I take off. Roy looks at me nervously. "You heard that, right?"

"They're using the League." I wipe my forehead as we run. "Controlling them somehow. That means..."

"Kara is fighting Superman."

The floor shakes again and we stumble. As I do, I hit a button on my holo-screen by accident, and I lose my constant feed I've been sending to the cameras to hide our movements.

The voice immediately is back. "INTRUDERS IN SECTOR L3. SUBJECTS HAVE BEEN DEPLOYED."

Roy looks at me, eyes wide under his mask. "Please tell me that's not us."

I swear in Romani and scramble back up. "Wish I could." I feel something prickle on the back of my neck. "Scatter!" I shout and jump into the air.

"Huh?" Roy gets out, before he's decked by a bright red blob.

"Speedy!" I flip and land, head spinning as I try to place this thing. My eyes widen as I see someone standing over Roy.

It's the Flash. In case the vivid red long johns and lightning bolt insignia didn't give it away, the super speed sure did.

Part of me is overwhelmed with meeting a Leaguer outside of Batman for the first time. The other part is freaking out because this Barry Allen obviously is not right in the head. He keeps twitching like on one hand he wants to attack Roy, and on the other he wants to run away.

The voice echoes overhead. "SUBJECT F! PLEASE RETURN!"

And Flash disappears in a blur.

Not that I get much of a reprieve. I only have a second to call out to Roy to see if he's all right before something whizzes by my ear and I pales itself in the wall next to my head.

My eyes widen as I register the flashing green arrow and I have just enough time to throw my cape over my head before it goes off (thank you Batman for Rule 658). The explosion shake me to my core but my cape hardens with the added pressure to protect me. I lower my cape and blink, trying to clear the dust.

"Speedy?" I call out hesitantly. Man, I hope Roy's alright.

"Robin?" Roy's voice comes from somewhere off to my left.

"Here." I start to make my way towards him but I hear another twang and a whistling sound followed by an almost identical sound. I turn in surprise just to see a green arrow smacked away from its trajectory towards me by a red arrow.

The dust clears somewhat to reveal Roy standing. He's got a cut on his face and his feathered hat is gone but he otherwise looks alright. He's got his bow drawn, an arrow aimed right at the new arrival.

Green Arrow keeps his next arrow trained on me, but doesn't launch it. He seems weary of Roy. I can see yellow stubble sprouting on the man's chin and his green Robin Hood costume is dirty and matted. I hadn't payed much attention to Flash (not that I had seen him for long) but I'm sure he looked the same. It seems they've all been really out of it for the past few days.

"Ollie," Roy says, voice gruff. "Put the bow down. I don't want to shoot you."

Green Arrow ignores him. He seems to be stuck. Arrow pointed at me but knowing the real threat is Speedy.

My hand has slowly been inching towards my belt. I reach into a pouch and finger two of my throwing disks. Green Arrow is fast. I might not be fast enough to disarm him before he shoots me. And even with his arrow cocked, I highly doubt Roy will shoot his mentor.

Luckily, the situation is dissolved when a blurs slams into GA and he crashes into the wall.

I blink, unsure what just happened. Did Flash come back?

No, this blur is different. Yellow. I catch sight of flaming orange hair, like Speedy's but darker.

Roy switches out his arrow and fires it at the unconscious Green Arrow. High density polyurethane foam erupts from the tip, completely encasing everything but the man's head. Roy breathes a sigh of relief.

We both look to our savior and are surprised by who we find.

It's Kid Flash, leaning against the torn up wall, breathing heavily. His goggles are pushed up onto his forehead and his knees seem to be shaking. "Hey guys," he says.

Both Roy and I jump. We were expecting more mind wiped League members. But KF seems fine.

"Wally?" Roy asks.

Kid Flash gives a shaky grin. "The one and only. Did you see that heroic thing I just did? Dude, where are the chicks? Don't tell me they missed it!"

I'm shocked. Kid Flash is...normal. Well, as normal as Kid Flash can be.

Kid Flash laughs at the expressions on our faces. "Man...do I have a story to tell you guys. But...I think...I'm going to need...something...to eat first..." Wally's eyes roll up into the back of his head and he falls forward.

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I was wondering where our friend KF got to. ;) Next we'll get to see a little Robin and Kid Flash friendship. And our story begins to come to a close as all is revealed...

~youwishyouwerethiscool


	18. Chapter 18

Thank you for all those who review and all those who favorite/follow! You're almost as cool as me :)

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18

A few minutes later, we've got Wally revived. I fed him one of my energy bars and he devoured it in record time. After that, he started to come back to life. I gave him pretty much my entire storage of food from my utility belt. I did save one last one for myself, but seeing Roy stare at it hungrily, I split it with him.

"Hungry?" I ask, seeing him take it eagerly.

"Yeah, I haven't eaten since this morning."

That makes it a little harder to watch him eat the other half of my bar. I haven't had anything to eat since yesterday.

But whatever. If we don't get out of this situation, that won't really matter.

"Okay. I'm good now," Wally licks his fingers and gets to his feet. "Sorry, I have a super high metabolism. Been running on fumes for days. They didn't exactly feed us."

"Kid," I say, "who exactly are 'they'? You said you would explain."

"And I will!" Wally straightened his goggles and wiped his forehead. "Wow, it's been a tiring few days. These people are completely nuts!"

"Wally..."

"I know, I know. I'm getting to it. So...I guess I should start at the beginning, huh? Okay, well, you guys sent me ahead to check out the safe-house. That was easy, fun, or whatever. But then..." He seems to slow down ever so slightly. "Then I went to go check on my aunt. It occurred to me that she would be all alone since Uncle B—" he suddenly stops and looks alarmed with himself while glancing at me.

"It's alright, Walls." Roy smirks. "Robin knows everything about everyone."

Wally breathes easy. "Oh yeah, I forgot. Anyways, so I went to go check on her when I saw some of that smog, like the stuff that was floating around outside with the League. And I was like, 'whoa, that's not good,' and I tried to outrun it but it kept up pretty easy. Then I breathed a little in and next thing I know..." He shrugs. "I was waking up here. It was so weird, like my mind was foggy. I kept thinking I was seeing bad guys everywhere. Plus my mouth felt like it was full of cotton and I was lightheaded.

"There was this really loud voice overhead saying that the 'subjects' had been released. And I followed everyone else out. The bad guys were still there but they kept flickering. The fog in my head was clearing. I went down here and ran at super speed, and that seemed to make it a whole lot better. Flash sped by me all of a sudden in the opposite direction and I was like, 'oh man, I wonder what the heck he's running from,' and I went back the way he came and arrived just in time to stop psycho GA from shooting you guys. Man, that would have sucked."

I sit back on my heels and frown. "Ah, okay."

Roy looks at me, annoyed. "Dude, we've been over this. Please explain."

"The fog is a chemical compound. A—"

"Hallucinogen," Kid Flash interrupts, talking at a breakneck pace, "one that interferes with the brains perception of danger and causes major problems in the occipital lobe of the brain. We perceive things that aren't really there. Of course, that might also relate to the parietal lobe as well. I'm thinking a small vapor like chemical that is inhaled and goes through the bloodstream."

"Yeah," I say, impressed. "And that's why it had so little effect on you."

Roy held up his hands. "Am I the only one here who's not a freaking genius? Someone speak English."

"The 'fog' wore off on Wally incredibly quickly because his heart pumps quicker than a normal person's and re-oxygenizes his blood. So the chemical is no longer in his system."

"Oh."

"And that's probably why they called Flash back, when they realized what was happening. But it was too late for Wally."

Wally nods, grinning. "Exactly."

I sigh. "I wish I had a sample of the fog. I might be able to whip up an antitoxin that would work..."

"How about my blood?" Wally offers. "There might be some residual chemicals on my hemoglobin."

"Yeah, and then my holo-computer can analyze that for the chemical formula—"

"And once we have that, we can reverse engineer a synthesis that should reverse the process!" Wally grinned. "Dude! Where have you been?"

I laugh. "At last, someone who can keep up." I glance at Roy. "No offense."

Roy just shakes his head, eyes amused. "Told yah you guys would be good friends."

I take a syringe out of my utility belt and Wally holds out his arm. I chuckle slightly when I see Roy look away as I take some of Kid Flash's blood.

I run it through my wrist computer. Immediately a result pops up. That's strange, that wouldn't usually happen unless the substance had been identified before. My eyes widen behind my mask as I read the screen. "Oh..."

"What?" Wally asks, sounding nervous. He probably wants to know what I found in his blood.

"This chemical, it's a compound I deal with all the time," I say, frowning. "Do you guys know Scarecrow?"

They both shake their heads.

"He's a Gotham villain. Runs around and scares the crap out of people. One of the ways he does it is by releasing a toxic fear gas into the air through his mask. It makes you hallucinate your greatest fears."

Wally's eyes grow huge. "So I was experiencing a fear?"

"No, it's a synthesis of the chemical. The strong hallucinogen part, though from what I can tell..."

Wally looks over my shoulder. "Oh, I see. It's a mind controlling toxin that puts you in a submissive state but also one of high anxiety. Making it easy to convince people under the influence of the toxin to do what you want. I recognize that chemical compound."

Roy whistles. "Wow."

The building rumbles. "Why don't you try to contact Supergirl," I say to Roy.

"Kara's here too?" Wally looks around.

Roy's eyes widen. "Oh, I totally forgot." He brings a finger to his ear. "Speedy to Supergirl. Supergirl, are you there?"

He pauses and we wait, holding our breath. "No response."

"I thought so," I say reluctantly, "that's why Aqualad hasn't contacted us. Usually he would have gotten ahold of us as soon at the building started to shake. This prison blocks all radio signals."

Roy takes out his earpiece and looks at it disgustingly. "Piece of junk. This thing can get a signal on Mars but not in this stupid bunker?"

"So this antitoxin," Wally says. "I'll need supplies."

"There's a lab down here that the League has to experiment on alien devices in. Should have everything we need." I pull up the map once more. "I know where to go."

"Uh...what about...Green Arrow?" Wally gives me a look before nodding to GA. Roy is knelt down beside his mentor, feeling his forehead.

"He's not the greatest of dads," Roy says quietly. "But he's a good guy. I don't think we should leave him here."

I nod and kneel down besides the hero in question. "First we have to get him out of this gunk."

Being Batman's partner has its benefits. I'm not super strong so I can't break out of everything by slamming my head into it, and I'm not able to vibrate my molecules, phase through solid objects, or shrink down to a molecular size. So I always have to do things the old fashioned way.

Rule 56: Everything has a weakness.

I carefully feel the hardened foam, rapping it gently with my knuckles.

"It's designed to withstand most superhuman strength levels," Roy is saying glumly. "We'll have to leave him. He's too heavy with that stuff on him."

And I'm sure he's a feather without it, I think. I ignore Roy (like always) and focus on the hollow echo I'm hearing from the foam.

Wally's tapping his foot at a good two hundred miles per hour. "Nah, we can roll him. Or drag him. Or if we all work together, maybe you can use one of those grappling arrows, Speedy—"

"Shut up, guys," I snap. They immediately do. I tap the same spot again. There it is. A dull thud. "Step back."

I get up and take a deep breath. I can't miss. First, it would hurt because this foam is hard stuff, even with my pretty much invincible combat boots. If I hit it wrong, the force will have nowhere to go but back up my leg, cracking every bone it hits. I take a judo pose and take a breath in through my nose and out through my mouth. Then I let out a mighty "Ke-yah!" and preformed a standing front flip, rotating my body quickly so my momentum brought the heel of my right foot slamming down onto the predetermined weak spot. The foam cracked and split right down the middle.

Roy and Wally stared at me.

I shook my foot a little. "Ow." I had hit the spot pretty much right on, but that hadn't stopped the force from jarring my foot.

"Even Superman would have trouble breaking that," Roy says.

I shrug. That's why he's not Batman.

Roy gets down and Wally and I help him move the foam off Green Arrow. He's still out cold, thank goodness. Wally grabs his legs and Roy grabs under his arms and I hold the map. Together, we're able to get GA further into the still shaking building.

"I wish this building would stop vibrating," Wally complains.

"No you don't," I say. "If it stops shaking, that means somebody lost."

We all walk on in silence on that happy note.

We hide to avoid another guard patrol and finally turn down the hall that leads to the laboratory.

The lab has a glass wall that faces us. On it, I catch my reflection for the first time in days on the dark windows.

I look like I've been in a fight and it didn't go so hot. My forehead has a cut on it from where I smacked it into that bookshelf a few days ago. I can tell I have a black eye from wear blue and black blotches ooze out from under my mask onto my cheek. That's where the guy at the warehouse hit me. My hair is pretty matted and greasy since I've been sleeping outside for so long. The dirt I rubbed on my arms, face, and neck, is still there. I haven't brushed my teeth in forever either, but I didn't really need a mirror to tell me that.

Roy has set GA down and has been working on the door while I was studying myself. Wally frowns at me.

"Alright, Richie?"

"Uh..." Suddenly, what he just said clicks in my head. I turn on him. "What did you just call me!"

Wally throws his hands into the air. "What? Oh, sorry, yeah, you like to be called Dick, right? Sheesh, dude. Chill out."

I'm staring at him, flabbergasted. "How do you know my name?"

"Uh, what? You told me. Back at the Bat-cave..."

I bring a hand to my forehead in disbelief. Kid Flash was adducted right after we ran into Hunter and Raina. That girl must have not erased his memories like she did the others.

I glance at Roy. He's struggling to get the door unlocked and seems completely engrossed in what he's doing. I probably could have had that door open by now, but I'm glad he's distracted. I need to talk with Wally.

"How much do you know about me?"

"Only what you told us, man. Your name. And we obviously figured out who the B-man is. And why are we whispering?"

"The others had their memories erased, Wally. They don't remember a thing about my identity. And honestly, I liked that fact."

"Oh..." Behind his goggles, Wally's eyes widen. "Dude, sorry, I—"

"No, it's okay. Just don't throw my name around like that anymore." It's really not okay. Of course the only person who knows my identity is the motormouth Kid Flash. Batman's going to kill me. Then bring me back to life and kill me again.

"Then you should know..." Wally glances at Roy. He whispers, "I also overheard what you and Aqualad talked about. About your parents dying."

My heart clenches. "Don't. Ever. Talk. About. That. Again."

Wally takes a few hurried steps back. "Sorry, sorry, Rob. Of course not. I get what it's like. To have stuff you'd rather people not talk about with you." Wally's face darkens.

I'm surprised. I thought Kid Flash and I had nothing in common. But he's pretty nerdy, like I am. He also has a past he doesn't want people to know about. He's close in age to me to, so maybe he doesn't just see me as a little kid, but a comrade. A peer.

"I'm glad you know," I say quietly.

Wally looks at me surprised.

"I don't have anyone besides the Bat and...one other, who know both sides to me. And we're not exactly close in age."

"Hey, what are friends for?" Wally waves his hand, dismissing my serious tone.

I grin at him. "So then we're cool. But you definitely cannot tell anyone you know."

Wally nods seriously and sticks out his hand. "I swear by all things noble and justice-worthy in the world. I swear on my honor."

I shake his hand and we both burst out into laughter. It's one of my sincere laughs too, that I don't usually do when I'm in costume. "That was the greatest Superman impression I've ever seen."

"Thanks, I've been working on it."

"If you two morons are done," Roy calls. "I got this stupid door open."

Wally runs ahead and follow as quickly as I can. Back to business. But I can't stop the smirk from appearing on my face. It felt good to laugh again.

Wally shows off as he races around the lab, throwing chemicals together, heating up liquids, and then throwing it all into loud rotating machines. I consider myself to be pretty smart, but I've never covered anything this intense in the science category when I was studying with Batman or at school.

Roy is examining his arrows for minute flaws. I give up trying to understand what Wally's doing and sit down beside him.

I touch each of the pockets on my belt, reassuring myself that they're still there. I'm a little low on throwing stars but I have my own back up if it comes to it. I kept them a secret from Batman because I make fun of him naming everything after bats. But if he hears about me using a bird-a-rang...well, I would never hear the end of it.

We've propped Green Arrow up against the wall and I've used some handcuffs to keep him trapped, just in case he wakes up. Roy seems on edge and he keeps glancing at GA, like he's afraid he might suddenly disappear.

"He's not a great dad," Roy says.

Yeah, I had heard him say that before. I sit back and sigh. It seems as if Roy's got some stuff to get off his chest, and though I don't really want to play psychologist, it doesn't look like Speedy's going to give me much of a choice.

"I think when he took me in, he just wanted a sidekick. Or good publicity or whatever. To appeal to a younger audience. He didn't really need a sidekick. But it made him seem like a better hero. Made it seem like he was great with kids because he had a sidekick before pretty much everybody else in the League. I think Aqualad was the only other one around, and everyone could pretty much tell that Kaldur was just serving his king. Or maybe they have some type of father-son relationship, I don't really know. But I don't know about me and Ollie...when we're in uniform, everything is so much easier. We play the part, beat up the villains. But then when we take off the mask, we have nothing to talk about. Nothing in common."

I run a hand through my hair. "Batman always used to tell me about the League. I've never met them face to face." I glance at Green Arrow slumped in the corner. "I dunno. Everything I know about them is based off Batman's extremely judgmental view of them. He always said that Green Arrow was almost too selfish to be a hero if he didn't happen to make a good choice every once in a while." I shrug. "But that's just Batman lingo for GA annoys him and he wishes he weren't a hero so he could beat him up."

Roy gives me a look. "Batman, huh? You know, you guys are sort of alike. But not really."

I try not to roll my eyes, even though I know he can't see that movement. "Whatever does that mean?"

"I mean, you and Batman seem to be a lot alike. You're like a mini-Batman. Same scary glare, same awesome gadgets, same know-it-all attitude. But unlike, you, I've actually met other Leaguers. And that includes Batman."

"Really?" I sit up a little and look at him. I've lived with Batman forever. I've gotten used to everything he does and how he works. I've always wondered what other people thought of him when they met him face to face. The people of Gotham have their own opinions of him. That he's just a legend. That he's actually a really big bat. That he can melt people with a look. That he's a freak. That he's a vigilante. That he's a hero. But Batman doesn't exactly talk to civilians. But he would have to have civilized conversation with the other members of the Justice League, right? (That brings to might a disturbing image of Batman sipping coffee while chatting with his "coworkers" at the water fountain. I just got chills.)

"Yeah. I remember seeing him for the first time." Roy grins when he sees he's peaked my interest. "I had finally been allowed to go to the JL headquarters..." He suddenly pauses and looks at me questioningly.

I sigh. "I know the Hall of Justice isn't the real headquarters. It's just a front for the public. There's a real one in space."

Roy nods. "Yeah, the Watchtower."

I smiled to myself. Of course, Batman never actually told me that, and until arriving here at the Hall myself, I had thought this was the real headquarters of the Justice League. But it didn't seem practical. I completely guessed that the real one was in space, however. Seemed like the only logical place for them to deploy heroes in case of emergency.

"Yeah, so I had just gotten to go to the Watchtower. I remember Green Arrow was lecturing me on how to not embarrass him in front of everyone and I was sort of PO-ed since I had been his sidekick for a year and I had only ever been to the Hall of Justice and stuff. I had met other League members when we had teamed up with them during certain emergencies. So I wasn't a totally wide-eyed new kid.

"Of course, I completely ignored what GA said and found some League members as fast as I could so that could tell the most embarrassing story I knew about Ollie. It was hilarious. I had them all going..." Roy smiles at the memory. "There were still a few Leaguers I hadn't met yet like Hawkgirl, Martian Manhunter. One of the Green Lanterns." He waves his hand, dismissing them. "But the one I really wanted to meet was Batman. Ollie had always told me how uptight and annoying he was. And anyone who could annoy Ollie was cool in my book. I really wanted to make a good first impression. Batman scares the crap out of Superman. I really wanted this guy to like me. So when he walked out of the zeta tube, I ran up to him, and smiled my best smile and said something like, 'Hey, Batman, I'm Green Arrow's sidekick, Speedy'."

I lean forward. "What did he say?"

Roy laughs. "He said, 'What kind of dumb name is that? No wonder you're Oliver's kid.' And then he blew right past me."

I laugh with him. The second time today. Both times when it seems totally inappropriate. We're in the prison lab underneath the Hall of Justice with enemies all around us, our mentors going crazy, and while trying to make an antitoxin to save everyone before Supergirl and Superman destroy the place. Yeah, not the best time, but I'm enjoying it. For the first time I have friends who are heroes. Aqualad is sort of my friend, but he's just too...formal. Roy may be the same age as him, but he acts younger. Kara irritates me with her uptight, new hero manner. Maybe give her a few months in this business, and she'll loosen up. Until then, super powers or not, I'll punch her if she starts preaching the League rules at me again.

I feel at ease for the first time in days. I feel like I'm ready for anything.

Which is a good thing because I might just have to be.

"Eureka!" Wally runs over to us and shoves a tube under my nose. "Behold, my dear friends, the cure-all we've been searching for. Created by the greatest scientist of our generation, the Kid, the Flash, the fastest boy alive—!"

"Wally—" I snatch it out of his hand. "We don't need the speech." I study the pinkish liquid. "So...this is it."

"Uh! This is it? This is the greatest chemical antitoxin whipped up in only thirty minutes, like, ever! It's a true work of science! I could win the Nobel prize!"

"Calm down, Kid Mouth," Roy growls, slapping his arm. I'm sure it's great or whatever. But will it work?"

"Yeah, it'll work," Wally huffs. "There's a slight problem though."

I raise an eyebrow. "Oh? And what's that."

"Well, it has to be administered the same way the toxin was. Inhalation. And none of the equipment here is suited to do that."

"Oh, is that all." I take out a vaporizer from one of the pouches on my belt. "Like I said earlier, this is like fear toxin. Batman is always prepared when when it comes to having any options available open to us." I pour the liquid into the tube on the back. "You're sure this will be enough?"

"Yeah. And because it's taken as a gas, they need even less of it. Should cover everyone."

I nod. "Okay. Let's try it out." I get up and head towards Green Arrow.

"Whoa, hold up," Roy says. "Not that I don't trust pink liquids made by fourteen-year-old kid geniuses, but that might do something other things. Like make him break out or get a rash or lung cancer or—"

"Pshha, Speedy, don't be so stiff. FDC approval is so overrated."

Wally nods at me while holding back Roy. I squat down and squirt a little of the pink gas at Green Arrows face. GA takes a little breath and I can almost see it go up his nose.

We all freeze, waiting for GA to breath again. Oh no, did I kill him...?

Green Arrow suddenly inhales sharply and starts breathing steadily again. We all sigh in relief.

Roy looks at Wally. "Why are you so relieved? I thought you said your stupid potion was foolproof."

Wally grinned. "W-what? Please, I was totally sure it was going to work."

"It hasn't worked yet," I say. "So far, all it has done is not kill him."

"Thanks for that, Rob."

I take out some smelling salts from my belt and wave them under Green Arrow's nose. He jerks awake, coughing. I'm sure that delightful aroma of Wally's pink gas combined with the salts really screwed up his sinuses. Just thinking about it makes me sneeze.

"Bless you," Roy says absentmindedly. He gets down next to me. "Hey? Ollie? Uh, Green Arrow?"

Green Arrow blinks from behind his mask. He makes to move but frowns when he sees he's restrained. "Speedy? What the heck is going on!"

"Chill out, Arrow," Wally says, moving his hands quickly as he talks. "I can explain really quickly—"

"Uh, no thanks, Kid. I can't understand you when you talk that fast."

Wally looks hurt. "I'd slow it down so even you can understand."

That elicits a laugh out of me. It reverberates of the walls, causing my companions to shutter.

"Where I am? And who is that? Why am I being restrained?" Green Arrow's eyes roll around, looking at each of us in turn.

"Arrow, it's okay. Everything's fine. But we're in a bit of a sticky situation right now, so if you could just calm down and shut up, that would be great." Roy gives me a look and I free Green Arrow, who straightens up, rubbing his wrists. I put the bat-cuffs back on my belt.

Green Arrow gives me the once over. "So who's the new kid?"

I bite my tongue and turn to Roy and Wally. "Now that we know the antidote works, we should administer it to Superman before he ends up killing Supergirl. And anyone else we run across for that matter. I really hope when that voice said, 'Releasing subjects,' she wasn't talking about the whole Justice League."

"Yeah," Wally nods. "That would be sucktastic."

"Totally," Roy agrees.

"Well, that was a profound discussion," Green Arrow says, rubbing his stubbly blonde chin. "But would someone please explain what the heck is going on here?"

I curl my lip. I get what Bats was saying when he said Green Arrow was annoying. He sounds like a whining three year old. No, that's an insult to three year olds. I turn to him. "Currently, the rest of the Justice League of America is being controlled with a special toxin that was given to them through a contagion in a type of gaseous matter. We don't know who exactly is behind this or what their motives are. Every superhero and villain and their families have all vanished and we believe they're being held inside this detention center under the Hall of Justice. That's where we are now. They're using minor villains and thugs as minions and so far, we've gotten lucky. But we are extremely outnumbered. We lost contact with Aqualad and Raven topside about an hour ago. Superman and Supergirl are currently fighting in what I believe is the main atrium. We don't know the whereabouts or conditions of any other League members. Kid Flash was able to fight off the toxin given is increased metabolism and produce an antitoxin which I just supplied to you. That's the shortened debriefing, and I think I answered all your questions." I pause, thinking. "Oh yes, that's right. And I'm Robin."

Green Arrow stares at me, trying to take all the information I just gave him in. I smile, knowing I've impressed him.

"How old are you, kid?"

Oh. My. God.

I spin around and whip out a shuriken, pressing it to Green Arrows neck as I pin him to the wall. He looks surprised as I hold him with an iron grip. I give him my best bat-glare. "Why does everyone want to know that? It doesn't really matter. What does matter is the fact that I know about two hundred and seventeen ways to kill you and only fourteen of them are quick. And trust me when I say I'm not totally sure my mentor would side with you."

Green Arrow winces under my glare. "And who is your mentor?"

I smile, showing my teeth. "Batman."

Now that got the intended response.

Green Arrow pales and scrunches away from me. I release him and he slides to the floor.

"Oh yeah, in case you haven't noticed," Roy says, sounding amused, "Robin's a little touchy about his age."

"No really?" Green Arrow says, eyeing me carefully.

I put the shuriken away and relax my stance. "So, onward?"

Roy pulls Green Arrow to his feet and they all follow me out of the lab. I pull up he blueprints of the prison and scroll to the side with the main atrium.

Wally keeps glancing at the map and then speeding ahead, waiting for us at every corner like a little kid not wanting to let his parents go out of sight.

But it leaves me alone with the two archers.

"You know, I never guessed Batman would get a sidekick. Well, actually, there were a few bets going around..." I am really close to living up to my earlier threat to Green Arrow, especially if he doesn't shut up. "...about him eventually getting one. Superman and Flash said he would get this huge buff guy or some ninja from a dead clan in the east. And then Wonder Woman was all like, well, I think he'll get a kick a—butt girl as a sidekick which I could see, he seems like the kind of person who would have some psychotic chick as his sidekick..."

I sneeze again and cough a few times. "Please, keep dissing Batman, and we'll see what happens to you."

Wally looks at me with concern. "You okay, Rob? Sounds like you're sick."

No, no way. I cannot get sick. It just doesn't happen in my line of work. But, thinking back, I have been in some pretty questionable places, touched some questionable things, and then fed myself with those same hands. I reach up and touch my forehead. It feels fine, but I'm wearing gloves. As long as this doesn't affect my fighting or reasoning, I should be fine. (Though I did just try to take my temperature with gloves on.)

"We have to get this done," I say, clearing my throat.

"So what do we do," Roy asks. "Spritz everyone with Wally's Wonder Water and get the heck out of here?"

"Yeah," I say, my voice lowering. "And find out whoever is behind this and make them pay." I cough again, ruining the moment.

Roy grins, punching his hand. "That's what I'm talking about."

I close the map and break out into a sprint. Wally runs along beside me, silent but understanding. He knows what I'm thinking.

_Don't worry, Bruce...Alfred...everyone. I'm coming for you._

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MISSION:

So it has recently been been brought to my attention that my summary for this story sucks. Yeah, I sort of knew that... So, I want you all to help me. Please review with your suggestion of a good summary for this story. Make it appealing, interesting, and intriguing. Something that will want to make more people read this incredible story. (Mentioning how much you love, love, love it might help you win.) Which ever suggestion I like best I'll use and give you a S/O in the next chapter. So whether you be loyal fan, random reader, or mysterious "Guest" give me your ideas!

~youwishyouwerethiscool


	19. Chapter 19

Hello! Shout out to everyone who reviewed and favorited/followed. You guys rock! Special thanks to **ValkyrieKane**, **Falconface**, and **SonofBlack**! You guys are number one with your summary ideas! Infer a ton of careful consderation, I ended up using **Falconface's** summary with a few little tweaks from ideas the others gave me. The new summary is A LOT better thanks to you guys.

Onwards!

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19

The tremors in the floor get more pronounced the closer we get to the atrium. I go over the facts I know in my head, most of them that I've kept to myself all this time. After all, Rule 798 and 27 give testament to that.

We hear grunting and cracking and cries of anger up ahead. I wrap my cape around me and disappear into the shadows as I sneak around the corner. I make myself visible just long enough to motion to the others to stay there. Green Arrow looks none to happy about that, but thankfully Roy holds him back.

I can't say I'm all that surprised by what I see. Half the League is battling Supergirl, Aqualad, and Raven. Well, just Supergirl and Aqualad, really. Raven is already knocked out and is lying slumped up against a wall.

So it's the two of them versus Wonder Woman, Superman, and Aquaman. Those are some heavy hitters. I deduce immediately that the only way Aqualad and Supergirl have survived this long is that they're working together. A few more seconds of observation and I determine that the older heroes aren't putting their all in as well. They're uncoordinated and keep getting in each other's way. Similar to how the Junior Justice League was getting in each other's way the other day. Man, I really hope they've improved their teamwork since then.

There are chunks of ceiling on the floor and indents in the walls from where people have slammed into them. Water is gushing out of a broken pipe in the floor, but it seems Kaldur has exhausted that ability, seeing how his water wands (or whatever they're called) are put away. He's fighting Aquaman hand-to-hand.

Wonder Woman and Superman seem to be taking turns beating on Kara. She'll manage to pin one and then the other will sneak up behind and tackle her. I'm impressed with her fighting ability though. Her Kryptonian heritage seems to be kicking in. Batman's told me about when Superman would get like that. Her eyes are glowing with heat and she's snarling like a feral animal. What she lacks in experience, she seems to be making up for in sheer ferocity.

"Oh God."

I spin around to see Green Arrow there. His bow is notched but he's got it lowered and is staring at the spectacle around him.

"I told you to stay back," I snap at him.

"Cool down, junior Bats. This is huge. This is a problem."

Wally speeds up beside me. "So what's the plan, Stan?"

Roy trots up next to his mentor. "Let it be recorded that I was the last person to disobey you."

I feel a pouch on my belt. "I've got a plan. But we'll have to..." I trail off as my eye suddenly catches sight of something. Someone, actually. Several someones.

Sitting absolutely still with a smile on her face is a woman I've never seen before in my life. She has dark skin and is dressed in a skintight, purple costume that would totally not be appropriate at my school. She's sitting upright in a foldable metal chair, watching the supers fight before her. On her left is Hunter, tapping his foot and smirking. On her right is Raina, whose glowing eyes flicker around the room before finally landing on me and my brightly dressed companions. She must say something to the woman, because suddenly, she's looking at us too, the smile never leaving her face.

Green Arrow has already jumped in with his sidekick to help out Kara. What two archers can do against invincible super humans, I have no clue. Hopefully, they'll be able to slow Wonder Woman and Superman down a little to give Kara a rest.

Wally sped over to help Aqualad in his fight. Together, it looks like they're managing to turn the tables on Aquaman.

Which leaves me.

I make to move out of the shadows (they've seen me anyways) and go across the room, when a firm hand grabs me and whips me behind a pillar.

"Sharp?"

Sharp presses a finger to his lips. He's still wearing his bright red baseball cap. He glances behind the pillar. "Were you seen?"

I make a face. Of course I was. And it's not like he's any less conspicuous than me.

This is it. It's time to launch my plan into action.

I jump forward and do something Sharp definitely wasn't expecting. I hug him. I wrap my arms around his waist and scrunch up my face like a little kid.

Sharp stands there, surprised. Then he hesitantly pats me on the back. "Shh, it's alright. I'm here now. Everything's going to be fine."

I pull away and wipe nonexistent tears from my face. "I know. I'm sorry. It's just..."

"Oh, Boy Wonder?" A voice calls.

I peek out from behind the pillar. I bite my lip, glaring at the speaker.

Hunter is smirking at me, standing just a few feet away. He's still pretty confident in his teleporting skills then.

"You and your big buddy better come out here. Otherwise, your friends might get their heads ripped off."

My eyes widen as I look around the room. It seems the brainwashed heroes were able to overcome the others. Raven is still slumped against the wall, not having been revived. Kara is lying on the ground, not moving, with Wonder Woman's foot planting squarely on her back. Green Arrow is standing protectively in front of an unconscious Roy, but his bow is broken. Wally and Aqualad are kneeling, both being held in place by Superman's strong hands on their shoulders. Only Aquaman is knocked out after all that.

"We better do as he says," Sharp says to me.

I nod and follow him out from behind the pillar. Hunter smiles at me widely. "Too easy," he says, and teleports back to the woman's side.

She stands. "Why, hello, Robin. Pleasure to meet you."

I feign ignorance. "Who are you?"

"Me? I am, today, the world's greatest villainess! I did what no one has ever done before. I defeated the entire Justice League and made them my slaves."

My hands clench at my sides. "Why? Why capture heroes and villains alike? So that you're all that's left?"

"Exactly. Do you want to know who I am? I am a D-list super villain with pitiful powers. Do you know what I can do? I can control—"

"Water vapor," I say.

The woman stops and looks at me curiously before continuing. "But given the right circumstances and the right amount of ingenuity, I was able to come up with a plan. I do live in Gotham, after all. And what Gothamite doesn't know what it's like to experience Scarecrow's fear toxin? And fear is a powerful thing."

She starts to pace, her eyes never leaving my face. Likewise, Hunter and Raina's eyes never leave her. "It was surprisingly easy to get a hold of the toxin, the GPD are incompetent at securing things like that. I'm a chemical biologist in real life, similar to Mr. Flash, aka Barry Allen," she smiles at Wally who shivers. "So I was pretty easily able to modify the toxin to suite my needs. What I got was a toxin that makes our dear little supers highly susceptible to orders, but at the same time, makes them believe they are doing the right thing. That they are actually fighting terrifying monsters, not young children."

I nod, I had already known as much. "But there are some that won't work on."

"True. You'll notice some people missing from our little party. Martian Manhunter, was one that I infected with knockout gas carried by my fog. Red Tornado was another one where we had to use...alternative means. The Flash, we just realized, would wear through the toxin quicker than we could administer it. But we were to late for Flash Junior." She waves a hand dismissively. "But once you have one League member, it's surprisingly simple to get into the Hall and then all the secure files. That's how we discovered everyone's identity. After that, it was a piece of cake, rounding everyone up like that. And then this beautiful center was right under our noses, set to restrain everyone, even the League's best."

"What about Batman? His identity isn't on League records."

"That is true. But once we had the Man of Steel, we were surprised to find out he actually knew who the fearsome Dark Knight was. Batman did pose a challenge of a different sort though. He knew we were coming. And apparently, he tried to warn everyone. Good thing they didn't take him seriously."

I growl. "He tried to warn Superman. But Superman didn't realize he was right until too late. By then, he could only send a quick message to Supergirl before you got him."

"Very good," the woman smiles. "You live up to your reputation. Now you're probably wondering, why were we after you so desperately?"

"Because I was the one thing you hadn't planned for. There was no record of me in the League files."

"True, and we weren't prepared for a second, albeit smaller, Batman. Batman himself was near impossible to restrain. The toxin didn't seem to have the same affect on him as he did the others. Which is the reason he's not here with us now." She sees my face and adds, "No, he's not dead. I believe we'll wear him down eventually."

By this time, I've noted that the minions we've passed on our way down to the atrium are starting to slowly trickle in. They've formed a ring around us. I recognize them from the files at the Bat-cave. They're are all Gothamites. Drug dealers, gang members, human traffickers. The lowest of the low. Batman must have sensed them banding together. He really did see this coming.

"You, little birdie, are the last one standing. We were impressed by Batman. But adults are usually very set in their morals. I find children are often more...accepting." She pats Hunter on the head.

Suddenly, from all around, the henchmen all speak at once, "First comes the anagnorisis, and the peripeteia soon shall follow!"

I jump at the unexpected noise and the woman chuckles a little. "A mild sedative in every town I passed through. The people didn't seem to care that their beloved superheroes were gone and crime in the city all but stopped. That is the way this world is supposed to be. These goons were all too willing to follow me. Through in a little brainwashing to minds that are already terrified for their lives, and you get faithful servants. New commands are handled through Raina here." She smiles at the blue-eyed girl.

I curl my lip. Though peripeteia may fog the path ahead... "You're the peripeteia."

She smiles wider. "That's the name I'm going with. Peripeteia. Do you know what it means?"

"A sudden reversal or change in a circumstances."

"Very good. You're as smart as I was told you were. And this is the Peripeteia. We've had our eye on you for a while now, Robin. Ever since we had one of our men come to us saying Batman had a new young sidekick. And then I sent someone to watch you during this whole situation."

I know this too. My hand slowly starts to drift towards my utility belt.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, little birdie. Do you see this button?" She holds up a clicker. "It automatically will unlock every cells of every superhero and villain alike that I have under my control. They can be up here in a second. Or, for a more immediate response," she points at Aqualad and Wally, "I can have Superman rip them in two."

"What do you want from me?"

"Nothing, just for you to join me. I want people to fear me. I want absolute control. And you want peace on Earth. I can keep the fog over everyone. I can make sure no crime is ever committed again. All I ask is that you come with us."

I clench my hands. "That's not living. The people are walking around like zombies. I would rather die then help you do that."

"Really? And what about your friends? Would you rather they die too?"

I look over and meet Green Arrow's eyes. He's cradling Roy who's bleeding profusely. Wally shakes his head quickly at me before Superman clenches his hand and I hear bones snap. Wally cries out in pain.

"Do not do it, Robin," Kaldur calls to me, before he too is silenced by Superman.

I don't look behind me, but I know that Sharp is watching my every move.

I turn back to Peripeteia. "What's stopping me from going over there and beating you up before you and your lackeys can press that button? After all, I've done it before." Not really. I have managed to take out Hunter, and I think I can manage Raina. "You only control the fog, and it will have as much an effect on me as it does Batman." Batman and I both trained to withstand the fear toxin. I can usually fight it off.

"I know that. It's a shame, I was hoping I wouldn't have to play this card. As they all say, the anagnorisis usually comes before the Peripeteia, but still..." She lazily waves a hand. "Sharp, could you—"

But I'm already in the air, flipping backwards to land behind Sharp. He spins around, hand going to his belt.

"Looking for this?" I say, holding up his knife. I picked it from his pocket when I hugged him earlier.

Sharp's eyes widen. "You! But how...?"

Peripeteia screams in frustration. "Why does he have your weapon? What have you done?"

I smirk, flipping the knife in my hand casually. "He didn't do anything. He's just not as good a liar as he thought he was." I put a hand on my hip cockily, still holding his knife. "You're the Anagnorisis. Which means the critical moment of recognition or discovery. It's used in Greek plays. Usually happens right before the Peripeteia. And it did, in this case. I knew who he was long before I even knew you."

"How?" Sharp says, eyes narrowed. "How could you possibly know?"

"Since that night in the warehouse where I saw Raina in my dream. It got me thinking, if Hunter and Raina are truly so powerful, why would they let me leave when I was going to break out Sharp? Wouldn't it be ideal for all the remaining sidekicks to remain under their watch? The answer was so obvious, I had to stop myself from blurting it out.

"They would only left me go if they still had an agent watching me.

"An agent that I would release for them.

"Batman was under your influence from the moment he made that call to me in the elevator, even if you only could control him for a little while. You knew it would be easier for you to take me out if you put me with a group that didn't work as well together like the Justice League sidekicks. Hence, you had Batman make up some story about Sharp working for him so I would free him and he could take me to the villain sidekicks. And from there, we would be easy to round up. Not to mention, you could have your agent Sharp watching me the whole time, like you said.

"But you didn't count on me figuring it out. And it's all thanks to Batman's secret message. The one they tried to make me forget, but failed. Blue red orange red green purple blue red yellow green purple purple orange. THE BLUE-EYED ONES ARE SPIES. THE MOMENT OF ANAGNORISIS IS PIERCING BUT BE BRAVE, EVEN IF PERIPETEIA FOGS THE PATH AHEAD. The colors and pauses translated into another language and I changed up one of the words to not let Aqualad, Speedy, Raven, and Supergirl know. Raina was too powerful. So I kept it a secret. Another way that one line would translate spelled it out very clearly. 'The Anagnorisis is piercing'. In English, there are so many different words that mean the same thing. That message suddenly becomes very different if I change the word 'piercing' to 'sharp'. You really think that just by being an informant to the Dark Knight makes you immune to his suspicions? He had you figured out in a heartbeat."

I shrug as I continue. "But I had most of it down even before I translated the message. It just confirmed things I already knew. After I had that dream with Raina in it, I knew Sharp was a double agent, sent to keep tabs on me. He said that the heroes had been 'brainwashed', remember that?" I cackle. "Too obvious. I never said anything about brainwashing. Mind control, I wouldn't have thought too deeply about. But brainwashing is something else. He was always there, and knew way too much to be still walking around. Unless, of course, he was on the inside."

Peripeteia snarls. "Interesting. So not only did you figure out that Hunter and Raina were traitors, you also figured out who Sharp was, and managed to hide it from us, at that."

"That's not all. We were also able to whip up an antitoxin. That's how we got Green Arrow back with us."

"Ah...so, what's next? One throw of that knife and you could take any one of us down. But you won't, will you," Peripeteia's smile widens, "you don't have the stomach for death."

I frown. "Maybe. But are you willing to bet your brother's life on it?"

"How'd you..."

"Easy. I did research Sharp after all. And though there isn't much on him, other than his 'D-list' power with a knife and that one furniture store robbery, he does have a sister. A sister with an enormous IQ. Plus, you guys have the same accent."

Sharp doesn't know what to say. His eyes keep flickering between me and the knife in my hand.

"You wouldn't dare."

"No, you're right," I lazily twirl the knife in my fingers. I notice a purple cloaked figure raise their head. "But you keep forgetting, I'm Batman's prodigy. And Rule 78 is..." I pull back my hand, "...to every blade, there are two parts: the knife and the handle. Both are effective in getting the point across." I throw the knife and jump up, flipping towards Peripeteia.

Sharp drops to the ground with a thud as the knife's hilt slams into his head.

Peripeteia screams out, "Get him!" while at the same time, I shout, "Raven!" and throw her the spritzer filled with pink liquid.

Raven scrambles to her feet, catching it. She looks at me in realization. Good, I was afraid she missed my explanation on what exactly that thing was.

"You said you can manifest your powers like she can!" I shout so quickly, it would have put Wally to shame. "I'm afraid I'm not going to last long without you're help!"

Raven nods, her eyebrows coming together to meet the little red diamond in the center of her forehead. She raises her arms and the spritzer rises on its own in front of her. Her eyes glow as she chants under her breath and the lights flicker as the shadows around us grow. Suddenly, she throws her hands skywards and a pink cloud held together by thick purple and black tendrils ascends on us. The goons hit the ground as soon as they inhale it. Wonder Woman passes out on top of Supergirl and Aquaman twitches where he lays on the ground. Superman takes a few shaky steps towards Raven before he flies straight into the ground. I'm glad it knocks them out too, it saves time, now that all her assembled henchmen are down.

I don't have long to marvel at Raven and her pink cloud of awesome, before suddenly, I'm being assaulted on all sides.

Hunter is punching and kicking me for all he's worth, appearing around me so fast that it feels like I'm surrounded. Raina has turned her telepathy up full force and it pounds at my already aching head. (I'm apparently sicker than I thought.)

I pull myself together as I start to count in my head. In Romani.

That throws Raina through a loop. She can't make sense of the unfamiliar language. And that's when I release the floodgates. The one thing Batman taught me about telepathy is that they can't handle other people's emotions very well. So, I release all my anger and sadness about my parent's death at her at once.

Raina falls back, tears flowing down her face. That distracts Hunter just long enough for him to pause in his assault. I make my move, kicking out at him. Like other powered people, he relies on his powers way too much. He's not actually that great at combat when he's not teleporting.

He stumbles under the force of my kick but remains standing. I throw down two smoke grenades and he starts to cough.

I smile. Too easy.

I run forwards and perform a back handspring with three flips, using the momentum to slam in to him. He never even sees it coming, which is a shame. That's one of my best moves.

Hunter flies back and slams into the wall, falling into a heap next to his still quivering cousin.

I walk out of the smoke cloud towards Peripeteia. She scrambles backwards, trying to get away. But she's shaking either out of fear, or anger, I can't tell.

"Wait, Robin! Please! I just wanted to be powerful! You know what it's like, to be looked down at by all the super powered people! To feel so worthless."

I pause, frowning down at her.

She grasps at my hesitation. "Yes! Please. I just wanted to be treated with respect. To be a queen. Surely. You can understand. You have no super powers at all. Doesn't that bother you?"

I take another step.

She smiles wider. "Yes! Come with me, Robin, and I can give you super powers! I can make you a god! You'll be better than Batman ever was!"

I take another step closer and kneel down so I'm level with her. Then I grin and laugh my signature cackle. "Super powers are overrated." Then I reel back and punch her in the face.

She falls back and slumps to the floor, unconscious.

I get up, brushing off my gloves. I look around at the mess. Unconscious bodies all around. Rubble, scorch marks, blood. This place is totally destroyed.

Kaldur and Wally are bent over the unconscious superheroes, trying to revive them. Wally's holding his shoulder very carefully and I think Superman may have broken it. But with Wally's metabolism, he should be fine in just an hour. Kara has managed to get up and is now tying up villains by the dozens, taking the fallen pipes and bending them around their bodies as easily as one would with rope.

Green Arrow has gotten out a first aid kit and is tending to Roy's wounds. I can't be mad at him that he didn't help me. It seems he cares more about Roy than Roy knows.

Raven floats down next to me. The bruises on her face stand out against her pale skin. Her eyes are still glowing, but her voice is casual. "So I have the antitoxin circulating throughout the building. Everyone should have inhaled it by now."

"Nice work," I say, grinning at her.

She shrugs. "You did all the work. I just spread some gas." She blushes. "You know, that sounded better in my head."

I smirk. "Is that so?"

"Yup."

"Hmm." I bend down and pick up the clicker that Peripeteia was holding. It's one of those classic ones that looks like it could set of an explosion if clicked.

"You know, that releases hero and villains. Maybe we should wait for the League..."

"Technically, I don't have to. Not an official part of it." Though after this, I doubt I'll be a secret anymore. I think of Kitrina and Enigma. They're both in there somewhere. I press the button.

The cheery female voice comes on overhead. "NOTICE. ALL PRISONERS CELLS HAVE BEEN UNLOCKED. EXCLUDING CELL 567, CELL 568, CELL 569..."

"Then that's where I'm headed." I toss Raven the clicker which she promptly drops like its contaminated.

"Are you crazy?" She says to me. "You're just going to let the world's worst villains run around here?"

There's an explosion not far off.

"They're quite resourceful," I say, smiling. "They'll all want to get out of here as soon as possible. And to answer you're earlier question..." I raise an eyebrow. "Do you really think someone who runs around with Batman is completely sane?"

Raven opens her mouth to answer, but I've already left.

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OMG! Who would have thought Sharp...? Okay, be honest, who saw that coming? Who was totally blown away? Review and let me know!

We are not done yet! Tune in next time folks...

*youwishyouwerethiscool


	20. Chapter 20

Thank you to all who review, follow/favorite! You're number one! Enjoy the next chapter where the reunion we've all been waiting for finally shall happen.

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20

I pass the huge hole the villains made in the wall and wince. I sure hope that's not coming out of my allowance.

All the villains seemed to have dispersed. The few I do pass ignore me, just trying to get out of the freaking Hall of Justice. I pass a few League members too, and some lower level supers, but they pay me no mind. They either disappear out the hole to the outside, or, in the case of League members, head in the opposite direction to the atrium.

The detention center seems a lot smaller than when I was wandering it earlier. Which is just as well, because I'm starting to feel a little woozy now that my adrenaline is gone. I cough wetly a few times into my sleeve and sniff. Just fantastic. Sick and injured.

I finally come to cell 567. I unlock it using the big red button on the outside (this is me, rolling my eyes). I peak in and see the Flash, lying on the floor, with a woman I recognize from TV kneeling beside him. That's right, she's Iris Allen, the Flash's wife.

She looks up as I enter. "What do you want?" She spits at me.

Gross. "Uh, sorry, ma'm. You're free to go."

"Free?" She blinks at me, as if seeing me for the first time. "You're here to rescue us?"

"That's right," I say gently. "It's all over now."

Iris looks down at the fastest man alive. "But Flash..."

"He'll be fine in a minute. The antitoxin knocks people out for a little while."

She looks up at me again. "I'm sorry, I thought you were one of those little kids that came to torment us. I don't recognize you."

"I'm Robin," I say, and help her stand. "When the Flash comes to, you guys should head down to the atrium. Straight down this corridor, and three rights and a left. You can't miss it."

"Th-thank you," she says, and suddenly embraces me. I freeze at the sudden contact, but soften slightly. Only slightly.

"I've got to go get the others out," I say, pulling away from her, though my entire body pleads me not to.

"Of course. Thank you, Robin."

I smile and wave at her before heading to the next cell. Man, I didn't realize how much I was missing physical contact other than getting punched.

I unlock it and enter. A man with green skin and creepy red eyes stands. I recognize his costume from TV, but it's still another thing to see him in person. "Martian Manhunter." I never did get that name. Not only is it a mouthful, is seemed pretty ominous for an apparently peace loving alien.

"Who are you?" His voice is deep and rumbling.

"Uh, Robin. Look, you can read my mind and find out what happened later. Or read someone else's mind, actually." No way I'm letting another mind reader in. "But right now, we've got some people in the main atrium who know everyone's secret identities and it might be really good if they we're to forget all that, right?"

The Martian stares at me. "I understand what it is you are alluding to. But I plan to talk to you more later, young Robin. You seem to have quite the story to tell. And I do not wish to read your mind to learn it."

I grin. "Okay, sounds good."

He nods at me and disappears through the wall.

I exit and head towards the last cell. Please...please...please...

Taking a deep breath, I unlock it and push it open.

This cell is different then the others. I have to stop myself from falling. It looks like a thirty foot drop. Suspended in midair by chains is a steel box. Laser beams points in all directions around it, ready to activate an alarm if even the slightest movement from the box is detected.

I look to the side and run my fingers over the control panel. One button to turn off the lasers. Another to bring the box towards the platform I'm on. And a third to open it. Each is password protected, but it's not hard for me to figure it out.

I feel a sudden tenseness coming from the box and I react automatically as a black shadow jumps out, trying to tackle me.

I push off the ground and flip backwards, my feet making vertical contact with the wall, then flip off it, grabbing a chain to swing myself so that when I land, I'm standing on top of the box, shuriken in hand, ready to combat the thing that attacked me.

"R-Robin?"

I blink, my eyes suddenly stinging. "Batman?"

The black shadow looks up and I see the familiar black cowl and the usually expressionless mouth open in surprise.

I jump off the box and land in front of my mentor. I stare up at him. I sense he is studying me from behind his mask as well.

"It really is you?" he says, his Batman voice is full growl mode.

I nod and look down. "You probably expect a full debriefing, and I'm sorry, I let all the villains out too, it was—"

I'm cut off when suddenly the Dark Knight pulls me into a hug. I'm shocked at first the Batman is breaking character so drastically, but then I hug him back. I burry my face in his chest and let myself feel vulnerable for the first time in almost a week.

"I was so worried about you. They kept telling me all these things they would do to you if I didn't comply. They said they would hurt you, Robin."

"I'm alright..." I mumble. I close my eyes and breathe. "Tátî."

Bruce freezes and then hugs me tighter. I called him Daddy. I used to call him that when I was very little. Has it really been so long?

He finally pulls away, but keeps both of his huge hands on my shoulders. "You're hurt."

"My own fault, mostly," I say as he touches the cut on my forehead. "Most of it was recent." My fight with Hunter definitely bruised a few ribs, I'm starting to feel that now.

"Make them pay for it?"

I grin. "Rule 29."

A British accent suddenly comes from behind us. "Ahem. Master Batman. Master Robin. I'm terribly sorry to interrupt..."

"Alfred!" I spin around to see Alfred standing in the doorway to the box. He's got a bruise on his temple, but other than that, he looks fine.

"Didn't sense him? Well, we'll have to work on that."

I grin sheepishly at Bruce and then rush forward to hug Alfred. The old man hugs me back. "Good to see you're all right, Master Robin."

"Robin," Batman calls to me. "Care to tell us what's going on?"

"It'll probably work better if I can explain all at once," I say. "But right now the League is assembling in the main atrium of the detention center. The bad guys have been taken out and apprehended. All that left to do is to explain what happened."

Batman then does something that few people have ever seen Batman do. And now I have twice. He smiles. "Nice work."

I smile back.

Batman glances at Alfred. "Alfred should get home. He has a minor concussion."

"There's a huge gaping hole in the wall that he can walk through if you call the Bat-mobile."

"Okay. Got that Alfred?"

"Yes, Master Batman." Alfred raises an eyebrow as he watches both of us type on our wrists computers. "And the Bat-mobile will recognize me?"

"Yes, I programmed your biometrics into it. You should be fine," Batman says.

"Very well, sir. I'll shall see you both in a little while then." We both watch Alfred go. He smiles at us before disappearing around the corner.

We head out towards the atrium. I feel happier than I have in a long time, walking beside Batman.

The sound of voices reaches our ears before we've even cleared the hallway. We blend in with the shadows and stay in the back of the room. Aqualad is giving his debrief.

"...and it was with the help of Robin we were able to get into this center, create an antidote for the toxin, and he almost single-handedly defeated the main characters behind this plot."

"Almost single-handedly? I didn't see you helping much," I grumble under my breath. I see the side of Batman's mouth curve up ever so slightly.

"This 'Robin' you keep talking talking about, Aqualad," Green Lantern calls out. "Who is he?"

"He is Batman's sidekick."

Silence meets this. Then the Flash starts laughing. A few other people join in, but none as loud as him.

"Are you kidding me?" Flash says, out of breath. "I thought you said the kid was like thirteen years old? The Batman has a kid?"

"Well," Superman says, his voice echoing around the room. "The only person who can answer that isn't here. So, I think we should make it out top priority to find Batman—"

"Not necessary," Batman growls. We both step out of the shadows, and the people nearest to us jump.

I follow Batman through the parting crowd to where Superman is. I can feel everyone's eyes locked on my back.

I can get a better look at who's in charge now that I'm in the front. All the big sidekicks are standing next to their mentors. Raven is standing a little in the background, but Kid Flash's arm over her shoulder is keeping her from going anywhere. KF has his other arm in a sling but he seems alright. Speedy and Green Arrow are the only ones who are missing from this ensemble, and I hope that mean they're giving Roy medical attention. He was pretty banged up.

"Batman!" Superman hovers over to us. "You're...okay?"

"Yes." Batman says simply. "I was—"

My alert on my wrist computer suddenly goes off. Everyone freezes, staring at me, who dared to interrupt Batman. Many had wound up in the hospital for less. But Batman only waits patiently as I tap on my holo-screen, bringing up the alert.

"It seems crime has started up again," I say to him.

"Radius of the building?"

"Negative. They went back to their home towns before causing any trouble."

"Hmm." Batman turns from me and surveys the room. "I think you'll find that your respective villains have starting committing crimes again. You're all dismissed. A full debrief of what has happened will be put on file for anyone interested in reading it."

No one is going to argue with Batman. Raven gets taken to the infirmary by Black Canary. Soon, only the founding members of the League and their sidekicks (except Green Arrow and Speedy) are the only ones left in the room. Respectively, Green Lantern (Hal Jordan), Wonder Woman (Diana Prince), Flash (Barry Allen) and Kid Flash, Superman (Clark Kent)'and Supergirl, and Aqualad and Aquaman (King Orin).

"So you're the Bat-brat?" Flash says, grinning down at me. He must be pretty confident in his speed if he thinks he can insult me standing this close.

"Robin," I correct.

Wonder Woman bends slightly at the waist to look at me. "You are small, even for a child."

Green Lantern's the next one to stick his face in mine. "So you're the hero of the day, huh?"

I look in irritation at him. "And you're the lackey of the day, huh?"

"Whew, he's got the Bat's mouth," Flash says with a laugh.

I see Batman's fists clench. But it seems they're all good friends, otherwise a comment like that would have had one of them in a bodybag.

"This is Robin. My partner," Batman says, introducing me formally.

I look around at my friends. Wally looks apologetic for his uncle. Kara is watching me curiously. Aqualad is smiling proudly like he trained me himself. Suddenly, I thought occurs to me.

I'm part of the Junior Justice League.

Everyone stares at me as I burst out laughing. My cackle echoes around the empty room.

"Well, Batman certainly doesn't do that," Green Lantern observes.

"What's so funny?" Batman asks, looking at me without moving his head.

I wave him off. "Does this mean I get my own badge now?"

Batman sighs, realizing why I'm laughing. "Not that you need one."

"I can show it to all the bad guys. Make them tremble in fear!" I wipe a tear from my eye and grin so widely that I feel my face might crack.

Nobody else is really sure what we're talking about.

"Batman..." Superman says. "Isn't he...a little young?"

"Kid Flash is only a year older than him," Batman points out.

"But Gotham is very different from Central City," Superman argues. "I just don't think..."

"I trust him more than I trust any of you," Batman says matter-of-factly. I have to hide the proud smile that's threatening to break loose across my face.

"He is only a child," King Orin says.

"With respect, my King," Kaldur says timidly, "Robin has proven time and again that he is very capable for his age. In many ways, more capable than us."

Aquaman looks down at Kaldur. "Kaldur'am, I must ask that you do not speak out of turn."

"My apologies, my King."

I look up at Batman and I recognize his stoic look of disapproval.

"But Kaldur is telling the truth," Wally pipes up. "Robin totally kicked butt. He had everything figured out from like the start and then he took out like every bad guy—"

"Kid," his uncle interrupts his tirade.

"Oops, sorry." Wally grins and turns pink.

"Yeah, he's right," Kara says. "Superman, surely you believe us when we say that Robin is not to be crossed. He's quite formidable."

"And Roy would totally agree with us if he were here," Wally adds, not to be stifled. "And Green Arrow too. Rob scared the crap out of him."

I can see the smile flicker on Batman's face at that, but nobody else does.

"Still, I do not think Gotham is suited for such a kid," Superman says, frowning deeply.

I study him. I wasn't very impressed by his fight with Kara. He clearly relies on his powers way to much. He's just like he appears on TV. The same chiseled jaw, same bulging muscles, same little curl on his forehead.

"Look, Clark," I say, clicking the hard sounds in his name. "I've been doing this for a long time. I don't need someone to talk over my head like I'm a baby."

Superman looks at me in shock before turning to Batman. "You told him our secret IDs?"

Batman remains unmoving. "No. He figured them out himself."

He leaves out the part of me hacking into the Bat-computer and getting yelled at for a half hour, but oh well.

"It is because of Robin we all still stand here," Batman says. "I remember warning certain people about what these villains were planning," Batman shoots Superman a Bat-glare, "but I was blatantly ignored."

"Hang on," Flash says, making a timeout sign. "Do you mean some of us knew Wacko One and Wacko Two and Junior Wackos in Training were going to do all this?"

"I suspected some type of incident would happen," Batman says. "And I warned Superman that if anything should happen to me, he should find my partner. Then I created a trail of clues for Robin to follow, ones that only he could figure out."

Super sighs. "Except I didn't believe him that something so extreme as every superhero and villain disappearing could happen. So I disregarded his message until I was under attack. It was then I sent a message to Supergirl."

"And I relayed it to the team," Supergirl says. "Even Robin was here at the time, though we didn't know it was him. He led us...on a wild goose chase, I guess." She gives me a sideways look.

Batman turns his head towards me. After so much practice at reading him, it comes naturally to me. The slightest muscle twitch, a movement on his face, the placement of his arms, it all conveys sentences. You led them to the Bat-cave?

I communicate back by raising an eyebrow. They would have made it there eventually. You know they've got the location in League records?

A slight tilt of the head. Yes, I was aware. Was you're identity compromised?

I look down. Not really, but...

"Robin..." He growls.

I shoot my head back up and frown at him. They don't remember anything. They pretty much got their minds erased and stuff. Just ask them.

Batman sighs. Out loud. The other Leaguers stare at us in interest.

"Are...you communicating telepathically?" Martian Manhunter says in confusion.

I roll my eyes and both Batman and I cross our arms at exactly the same time.

Flash points at me in horror. "It's...his CLONE!"

There's a blur and suddenly Wally's beside me, good arm thrown around my shoulder. "Nah, Robin's cool."

I half glare at him before looking sheepishly at Batman. Well...most of them don't remember.

Batman raises a hand like he's going to run it through his hair, just like he does when he's Bruce and I'm annoying him. Except, that doesn't work when you're wearing the Batman cowl. This seems to occur to him, because half way there, his hand changes course and he pursues invisible dust on his shoulder instead. I smirk at him.

Wonder Woman openly stares at us. "Incredible. This youth has, as you say, 'one upped' the Batman." She sure seems happy about that. I wonder if she and Bruce have history.

"We need to take full stock of what happened. We have currently fifty-seven criminals in the holding bay in the next room. They should be transported as soon as possible," Batman brings up the computer. I watch him curiously. I'm used to how he acts around me. But for the others, it seems like this is a new experience. "Bellreve Penitentiary should be suited to accommodate most of them. Robin, how many slots are still open?"

"Sixty eight," I rattle off automatically. He does in fact already know, he just asks me stuff like that as a test. I sniff and blink under my mask. Is it hot in here?

"Perhaps the more dangerous to Arkham."

Superman immediately finds fault. "Hold up, how come they're all going to Gotham?"

"Well, they are Gotham villains, after all," Batman says, barely hiding his irritation.

"These creeps were able to disable every superhero and villain we've got. I think that's a more global scale. And I'm talking Green Lantern territory," Green Lantern says.

Batman frowns at him. "Are you really going to insist on fighting over something so trivial?"

I start to feel a little woozy. Perhaps the excitement is starting to wear off. I close my eyes for a second. Great, I probably caught something off that stupid hairy poncho. I sneeze.

Batman stops in whatever he was saying and looks at me. I can tell what he's thinking. I've trained for hours to master my body. Most people can't stop twitching when you tell them to sit still. Or they suddenly have to sneeze. I've been trained never to do that. It could be deadly.

I sniff again. "Sorry."

And just like that, Batman is suddenly bending down on one knee in front of me. He takes off one of his gloves and places his hand on my forehead. I lean into its coolness.

"Temperature?" He says, voice uncharacteristically gently. I feel everyone watches our interaction but I ignore them.

"Probably one-oh-three," I mutter.

"Symptoms equivalent to...?"

I curl my lip in distaste. "A cold."

"He's sick?" Superman says in disbelief.

Batman looks over at Superman. I stick my tongue out at the Man of Steel when he does. Immature, I know, but I was sick of this guy.

"I'm taking Robin home." Batman's voice dares someone to argue with him.

"We're in the middle of something," Green Lantern says incredulously.

Batman pulls his black glove back on and stands to his full imposing height. "We will talk later."

Flash has his mouth wide open.

"Feel better, Robin!" Supergirl calls to me.

"Yeah, what she said, dude!" Wally says, grinning.

Aqualad glances at his King and doesn't say anything. He does give me a faint half smile though.

I frown at Batman. "I'm fine!" But I ruin it a little by breaking out into a coughing fit.

Batman glares at me softly. "No you're not. Agent A will prepare something for you."

"But Raven! And Speedy? Are they okay?"

"I'll tell you later," Batman says, placing a huge hand on my shoulder and guiding me away.

"Batman, we are so not done here!" Superman says.

Batman types something on the computer. "We will talk later. Say goodbye, Robin."

I snort. Then I plaster on my most cheerful smile and say cheekily, "Goodbye, Robin!"

Right before the zeta tube zaps us out of there, I hear Superman mutter, "He's worst than the Bat."

202020202020202020202020202020202020202020202020202020202020202020202020202020202020

So there will be one chapter after this to wrap things up. Tell me what you guys think! Your opinions matter even if their just "Wow, you're amazing!" *smirks*

~youwishyouwerethiscool


	21. Epilogue

This is is it! The final chapter! Review if you loved the book, PM me with questions, and let me know if you want a sequel ;). Thanks for everything. Live, love, Robin! Enjoy!

Epilogue

After three days at home, I'm back at school. It's been a full week since Friday. Friday, where I first got the call from the Bat and this whole mess started. I tried to convince Bruce (well, actually Alfred) that I should stay home Friday and then just start fresh on Monday. But Bruce thought it would be good for people to start seeing me again as soon as possible, and Alfred insisted that I had enough work to make up as it was.

The situation with Raven worked itself out. Bruce said that he's going to set something up so she gets the proper training. I'm glad to hear it. The League owes at least that much to her.

Roy made a full recovery, before I even did actually. I saw on the news this morning that Speedy is back at Green Arrow's side.

The villains all over the place have gone back to their normal nefarious activities. The difference is, Batman lets me go all the time to help stop them. It's the best part of my day.

I haven't seen Kitrina or Enigma since they waved goodbye to me before getting kidnapped. Though, there's been a chain of jewelry store robberies and somebody is sabotaging a fortune cookie factoring and leaving their own suggestions for riddles spray painted on the factory's walls. I might be seeing them soon.

The Junior Justice League have been off radar for a while. I think what happened to them really shook them up. I've only seen Wally so far. He's become a great friend. Yesterday, Bruce allowed him to come over and we played the latest video game until 3:00 am. (Another reason why I didn't want to go to school the next day).

The opposite has happened with me though. I've become more in the public eye. Newspapers all around Gotham report of "the Bat and the Bird" and "the new crime fighter Robin". Some papers even drag out old clippings from years ago that reported seeing me in my early years. "A secret helper to Batman has apparently been fighting along side him right under our noses for years".

It's great, really. Especially when I see a story about Robin and Batman has ousted an article about Bruce Wayne and his ward from the front page. Bruce and I always laugh at that.

But even with all the changes, school was still school. The teachers simply smiled at me and said, "I hope you feel better now, Mr. Grayson." My friends all laugh and joke that I was on holiday for so long, they thought I was dead. And I can't tell them that I just might have been.

It's still a depressing place of slavery. Which leads me to where I am now, staring out the window in my advanced Calculus class.

"Uh, excuse me, you're in my seat."

I look up lazily. "What?" Then I feel my eyes widen in shock.

Standing before me is the most beautiful girl I have ever seen. She's rocking a school uniform, with her long red hair thrown carelessly over one shoulder. Her eyes are the same color as the clear blue water out on the sea. She's maybe a year older than me.

"S-sorry," I stutter, staring at her. "I..."

"Oh, yes, sorry, Mrs. Gordon. You see, that actually is Mr. Grayson's seat. Here, I'll bring you over another." Our teacher drags another desk up besides mine. "There we go. Terribly sorry, Mr. Grayson. Ms. Gordon had occupied your seat while you were absent."

"That's fine," I say, recovering myself a little. I still can't help but glance at this new girl sitting beside me. She's apparently a year ahead of me (though everyone in this class is).

Later at lunch, I see her sitting all alone. "Who's the new girl," I ask, interrupting whatever someone was saying.

Paulina leans across the table, her glossed lips pushing forward in a pout. "Don't tell me you like her, Dickie."

I frown and say, "I just don't recognize her."

"She's Barbara Gordon," Michel answers, eager to please. "You know, the commissioner's daughter. She just transferred here."

I raise an eyebrow slightly. "Really?"

"Yeah."

Bruce handles most of the scholarships for Gotham Academy. He didn't mentioned he was signing the commish's daughter up though.

"Why's she all alone?"

"She's hot dude, I know right," Sanders grins, pushing back his blonde bangs with a manicured hand. "Too bad she's a scholarship kid."

They all go back to their normal conversations.

I stare down at my plate. Roasted turkey with mashed potatoes. It's probably cold by now since I've been sitting here thinking rather than eating.

I look over at Barbara. She's sitting with dignity despite the sympathetic looks people keep throwing her way.

I look around at these people I suppose are my friends. I attend their birthdays after all. I know what they like and don't like.

But they don't know a thing about me other than I'm handsome and am the ward of the richest man in Gotham.

Not to mention they're self-centered and conceited.

I'm not one of them. I'm a freaking superhero.

I stand up and pick up my tray. I leave the table and walk across the room, plopping down in the seat across from Barbara.

She glares at me, obviously suspicious. "What do you want?"

I raise an eyebrow. "Uh, to eat. It is lunch after all." I take a swig from my milk and happen to catch my friends watching me in shock.

"You're Dick Grayson," she says with distaste. "Bruce Wayne's kid. Heir to the largest wealth in Gotham, ex-acrobat, and an apparent genius."

I smirk. She did her research. "And you're Barbara Gordon."

"Please," she says, "don't act like somebody didn't just tell you that."

I smile wider. I like this girl.

"Your pretty boy smile may work on the other bimbos in this place," she says, "but they won't on me."

I pause for a second, staring at my cold meat. "Okay." I look back up at her and I allow my mask to drop. She's seeing Robin but without the mask.

She smiles for the first time and I swear she seems to glow. "There, that's better. You don't look so constipated now."

Suddenly, a lunch tray comes down beside mine.

"Yo," Sanders mutters.

Soon, everyone else has gotten up and is sitting around us. It doesn't matter if they're close to me or not, they just want to sit with Dick Grayson.

"I see you're quite the trend setter," Barbara says.

I shrug. "I don't really care."

"Oh, so you're not a conceited snob, huh?"

I smirk. "Oh, I wouldn't say that. Watch this." I turn to Michel. "Remember that time with the ping pong table?"

Michel laughs. "Dude! That was the best."

Everyone else joins in laughing before tuning us out again.

"Ping pong table?" Barbara takes a bit of her sandwich.

I shrug, "I made it up. It's whatever they want it to be."

Barbara looks at me with her captivating eyes.

Suddenly, my new League alert (disguised as a cellphone) goes off. I flip it open. A message reads: R- Joker escaped. Report to the front office, A will pick you up. -B

I smile. R for Richard or Robin. B for Bruce or Batman. "I'm sorry, guys, I've got to go. Family emergency."

"Dude, you're going to be held back into your actual grade if you keep this up," Sanders jokes.

I smile at him and wink at Barbara. "Catch you later, Babs."

Barbara studies me over her juice. "I guess there's more to you than meets the eye, eh, wonder boy?"

I get up and put my League communicator back into my side pocket. "You have no idea."

ENDENDENDENDENDENDENDENDENDENDENDENDENDENDENDENDENDENDENDENDENDENDNEND

That's it folks! The end! I hope you enjoyed! If you want to see the SEQUEL to this story I've been working on lately, please REVIEW! Until next time! That that you've read this, I know...

*youwishyouwerthiscool


	22. Chapter 22

p style="text-align: center;"HELLO everyone! This is simply to let you know that a new story has been posted by your's truly, the great youwishyouwerethiscool! Go and read right away! It's called Robin: Boy Wonder 2 and it is going to be just as fantastic as the first! Be sure to REVIEW. /p  
p style="text-align: center;"Thank you and enjoy!/p  
p style="text-align: center;"youwishyouwerethiscool/p 


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